Knoxville police charge four in connection with death of 22-year-old woman

Police have charged four people in connection with the death of Danishka Sibaja-Mejia, who was found dead earlier this month in a South Knoxville home.

At a Wednesday press conference, Knoxville Police Chief Paul Noel called Sibaja-Mejia's death "truly a heinous crime," but said the department was still working to determine the cause of her death.

The four suspects were indicted following a Knox County Grand Jury presentment Wednesday morning and all are in custody, department spokesperson Scott Erland said.

Latawyne Osborne, 39, of Knoxville, was booked on several charges, including first-degree murder, aggravated burglary, aggravated kidnapping, rape, arson and tampering with evidence. His bond was set at $2 million, court records show.

Marquis Ellis, 20, of Knoxville, was booked on several charges, including first-degree murder, burglary, aggravated kidnapping, rape, arson and tampering with evidence. His bond was set at $1 million, court records show.

Edward Wilson, 31, of Knoxville, was booked on charges including first-degree murder, burglary, aggravated kidnapping, arson and tampering with evidence. His bond was set at $1 million, court records show.

Angela Greenberg, 59, Osborne's mother, faces charges of tampering with evidence and accessory after the fact. She was taken into custody Wednesday and court records do not show her bond yet.

"This investigation still very much ongoing," Erland said, adding, "This is a really complex case with a lot of moving parts."

Sibaja-Mejia, 22, had been to the Knoxville Police Department the day before her death to report she was raped, police say.

When police arrived at Sibaja-Mejia's Gilbert Lane home on April 5, they found Sibaja-Mejia had died and two other people, a man and a woman both age 23, were shot but expected to survive. Osborne arrived at a hospital with gunshot wounds as police were investigating.

On the afternoon of April 4, Sibaja-Mejia told police she was the victim of a sexual assault at a home in West Knoxville several days earlier, naming Osborne as the suspect, police said. Sibaja-Mejia told police, according to court records, she had "blacked out" and believed the suspect assaulted her.

At the press conference, Noel declined to answer questions, saying more details would be brought to light but that his department believed they have identified and charged the individuals "most responsible" for Sibaja-Mejia's death.

He praised the efforts of the department and the district attorney's office, saying, "Everyone came together to work around the clock to solve this crime. We went from having very little to work with, to having an indictment five days later."

Liz Kellar is a Tennessee Connect reporter. Email liz.kellar@knoxnews.com.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Knoxville police charge 4 connection with Danishka Sibaja Mejia death