The man charged with murder in the 2012 death of teenager Vanessa “Honey” Malone is free on $80,000 bond, DeKalb County court and jail records show. The Malone family said Tuesday the fight is not over.
“I miss my Baby Girl and she definitely deserves justice,” Malone’s mother, Flora Malone, commented on a Facebook story.
Donald Ashe, 34, was arrested April 3 at his mother’s Stone Mountain home and charged with malice murder and making false statements, AJC.com previously reported. On Aug. 16, Ashe was released from the DeKalb jail after posting bond. According to his bond conditions, Ashe must wear an ankle monitor and remain at home except for visits to his attorney or doctor or for religious purposes.
On Monday, DeKalb police said the investigation into the 18-year-old’s death continues and no additional arrests had been made. But the lead detective in the case previously said investigators believe others were involved.
“We do believe that multiple people are responsible for this crime, and the investigation is ongoing,” Sgt. L. Shuler said in April. “We hope more arrests will follow.”
Shuler said detectives had spent hundreds of hours investigating the case, and that evidence examined by the GBI Crime Lab helped lead to an arrest.
Malone died Oct. 23, 2012, when investigators believe she interrupted an armed robbery. Her death sparked an outcry on social media, including on Facebook where 136,000 people are part of a “Justice for Honey” group. Earlier this year, the case was featured on “The Dr. Oz Show.”
Malone apparently interrupted three to six armed robbers who had tied up two residents and put them in a bathroom in an apartment, according to a DeKalb police incident report.
The couple told police they were in bed at the time the black-clad men armed with handguns and shotguns stormed into their apartment at the Hampton Village Apartments on Tree Mountain Parkway.
The man said the intruders took his wallet, tied up the couple and placed them in a bathtub in the rear of the apartment. The woman told police that shortly thereafter, she heard Malone enter the apartment, heard her screams and then heard several shots.
When police arrived, they found the couple outside the apartment and Malone inside “unconscious and not breathing, lying on her right side with several gunshot wounds to the body.” Malone died at the scene and was the only one killed in the incident.
Since her death, Malone’s family has pleaded for help in finding those responsible.
“WE WANT ANSWERS,” a Facebook page dedicated to Malone states. “That’s the purpose of this page, we want Honey’s story heard and we want the killer to pay for what he did! WE WON’T STOP UNTIL THAT HAPPENS!”
Anyone with information on the case is asked to contact DeKalb police.
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