Man charged in Mayfair double murder

MAYFAIR (WPVI) -- Philadelphia police have charged a man in connection with the murders of two women who were found shot execution style in a home in Mayfair.

25-year-old James Mears has been charged with two counts of murder, as well as other offenses.

The bodies of 67-year-old Dollie Evans and her 59-year-old houseguest Ruby Thomas were discovered around 5:30 p.m. Saturday inside Evans' home on the 4700 block of Vista Street.

Mears was the person of interest taken into custody Monday.

Homicide detectives say once in custody, Mears confessed to pulling out a gun and shooting Evans in the head.

Afraid of witnesses, investigators say Mears ran upstairs and attacked Thomas by choking her with a cord before shooting her in the head.

Police say the motive was robbery, as Mears knew Evans had cash on-hand. He stole $500 from the home.

Mears was a guest, police say, who had been staying with Evans for a couple of months.

"He was actually living there with the two females. After the gunshots were heard, he was seen leaving the residence," Philadelphia Police Captain James Clark said.

Lloyd Knox, Evans' brother, told Action News he and his sister had just made a grocery store run that night. He dropped her off and 30 minutes later, he got the call that she was dead.

Police say they are looking for a second man, but they're not sure what role he played in the killings.

In front of the Mayfair house Tuesday night, there were a few balloons, some messages of love, and family members reacting to the arrest of Mears.

"I pray for the people that killed my sister. God bless. I feel sorry for them," Ruby's brother Reggie Thomas said.

Ruby Thomas' cousin Cheryl Wilkins told Action News she loved life and loved everybody.

"She wasn't willing to die so she tried to fight him, tried to fight him off," Wilkins said.

Residents on the block knew Evans as "Grandma" because she took care of just about anyone who needed help. However her brother says she had recently received death threats but he didn't know why.

"She always liked to cook. A lot of people knew her because a lot of people would come around and eat, like the homeless or whoever, she helped them," said Knox.

Thomas' brother Joey says she had only been staying with Evans for a few months.

"My sister never - she never bothered a soul. She would come and clean your house, she would do everything in the world to get by," Joey Thomas said.

As he made funeral arrangements, Thomas' brother received the news that her suspected killer had been caught.

"I just need justice. I don't need vengeance. I need justice," Reggie Thomas said