Sketch of murder victim
Lt. Rick White of the Ellis County Sheriff’s Department said the body of a woman found shot has been identified — and she was not a member of the LGBT community. An arrest has been made in the case.
After the body was found, several clues led investigators to ask the LGBT community for help in identifying the woman. No missing persons report from the area matched the body.
White said that the woman has been identified as 19-year-old Sonya Ballinger of Irving. Thaddeus Terrence Quinn, 38, was arrested on suspicion of murder, after being picked up on a warrant for another offense.
White said Ballinger had been living with her mother until June and had been staying with her boyfriend in Irving.
White said her boyfriend wanted to report her missing on July 17, the day investigators think she was killed. Ballinger’s mother decided not to report her daughter missing, however, because she apparently had disappeared for periods of time in the past.
Quinn’s body was found on July 23 in a wooded area between Waxahachie and Midlothian about 6 miles south of the Dallas County line.
