Prosecutors dropped a capital murder case Friday against a 63-year-old man who was accused in the slaying of Ira Tobolowsky, a prominent attorney found dead with blunt-force injuries in 2016 after he and his North Dallas home were set on fire.
The Dallas County District Attorney’s Office filed the order to dismiss the charge against Steven Aubrey, who police connected to the high-profile crime early on but didn’t arrest until mid-2022, according to court records.
According to the court filing, prosecutors were “unable to make a prima facie case at this time,” meaning they couldn’t meet the standard to try the case. The case had been set for trial later this month.
Aubrey has previously told The Dallas Morning News he was not involved in the killing. He was involved in a legal dispute with Tobolowsky at the time of the lawyer’s death. Police did not clarify in mid-2022 if investigators found new evidence in the case or why the arrest was made at that time.
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Click here to read more on this report from our partners at The Dallas Morning News.