Law enforcement officials in Montgomery County have arrested and charged the girlfriend of a man who was murdered on Jan. 20, in Norristown for her, alleged, involvement in the crime that left him dead.
According to law enforcement officials, Katherine Emel, 29, of Plymouth Meeting, has been arrested for her suspected involvement in helping set up the robbery that left her then boyfriend, 35-year-old William Carter, dead on a Norristown sidewalk.
Three men -- Damon Brantley Jr., 18, of Norristown, Daquan Allen, 29, of Norristown, and Jerry Butler, 28, of Philadelphia -- have already been arrested and charged in this crime.
In announcing her arrest, law enforcement officials claim prior to Carter's slaying, Emel placed a GPS tracker in the trunk of her car -- the same vehicle Carter had driven the day he died.
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Then, on the day of the killing, investigators allege, she communicated several times with Allen, "telling him that Carter has recently won $3,000 gambling and provided the location where Carter was going to be on the evening of Jan. 20, 2024."
Following the murder, officials said they have discovered surveillance video from a business on N. Broad Street in Philadelphia that, they claim, shows Allen meet Emel, where he pays her $700.
“When you assist other people in committing a dangerous felony like robbery and the target of the robbery is murdered, then under the law, you are responsible for their murder as well,” said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele in a statement. “In this case, this defendant is charged with second-degree murder, which is a homicide that occurs during the commission of a felony.”
Emel turned herself in on Feb. 7, and she has been charged with second-degree murder, robbery and conspiracy offenses.
She was arraigned and has been remanded to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility.
Allen, Butler and Brantley were also arraigned by Judge Stephens and they were also remanded to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility.
A preliminary hearing for all four defendants is scheduled for 10:30 a.m., Feb. 16.
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