COLLEGE STATION MAN SENTENCED TO 50 YEARS FOR MURDER

  

A College Station man was sentenced to fifty years in prison after pleading guilty to murder in Brazos County District Court.

58-year-old Terry Ratliff was arrested in connection with the murder of his former girlfriend, Theia Flakes, which occurred on January 7, 2019.

College Station Police responded to the victim’s residence after her 12-year-old daughter called 9-1-1 to report that she had returned home from school to find her mother unresponsive and in a pool of blood.

The subsequent investigation revealed that Flakes had sustained multiple blunt force trauma injuries and multiple, deep stab wounds to her back.

The murder weapon was found at the scene with both the victim and defendant’s blood on it.

Flakes’ daughter and other family members revealed that Ratliff had been very abusive to her in the past, and was out on bond for a domestic violence-strangulation charge in Madison County.

Flakes’ vehicle was also reported missing.

College Station Police with help from the Texas DPS, the Midland County Sheriff’s Office, and the Midland Police Department tracked Ratcliff to a relative’s home in Midland.

A search of the home found blood-stained clothes in the washing machine, and the distinct odor of bleach.

Ratliff’s relative was charged with Tampering with Evidence.

After the conviction, the Brazos County D.A.’s Office release a statement saying that the victim’s family "can rest easy knowing that Ratliff will never be free to harm another living soul."