Accused killer's roommate speaks

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Dante Davis said he met Brandon Montgomery Daniel on Craigslist, and the two decided to live together.

Fast-forward to now, and the roommate said he had no signs of something like this happening. 

"When the detectives came, they told me Brandon had shot a cop, and it didn't make sense to me," said Davis. "Like quiet, Asian kid? He doesn't do anything. The guy just goes to work, comes home and rides his bike."

Daniel, 24, was formally booked into the jail after 8:30 a.m. Friday, little more than six hours after Senior Officer Jaime Padron was pronounced dead inside a North Austin Walmart.

Daniel is accused of killing Padron , a three-year veteran of the Austin Police Department. Padron was shot in the neck while responding to a call shortly after 2 a.m. of an intoxicated man inside the Walmart in the 12900 block of Interstate 35 and Parmer Lane.

Davis said his roommate was acting strange the night of the incident and made a joke about committing a robbery.

"He said, 'Dude, how cool would it be to rob a store?'" said Davis. "And you know, I joked around with him. But I kind of  joked it off like, 'There is no way this guy would do that.'"

By the time Davis woke up Friday morning and realized his roommate didn't come home, Daniel was already in police custody and accused of fatally shooting Padron, charged with capital murder.

It's something Davis said he still doesn't understand, since his roommate had a job as a software engineer at Hewlett-Packard making more than $70,000.

"The guy just got a raise, he got a promotion, he worked for HP. Everything was going great for him," said Davis.

It's a fatal tragedy that has left officer Padron's two young daughters, ages 6 and 10, without a father.

Padron came to Austin after 14 years with the San Angelo Police Department.

The Officer Down Memorial Page, a website that honors law enforcement officers killed while doing their duty, set up a memorial page for him just hours after the shooting.

Davis said he is still confused as to how the person he shared an apartment with could commit the horrible crime he is now accused of.

"I never even once imagined this guy would be in the situation that he's in," said Davis. "My heart goes out to the family of the officer, but I just can't see Brandon doing that."