CHEEK, Texas — The girlfriend of a man indicted in the Easter murder of a Houston father has been accused of lying to the grand jury.
Joelicia Wade, 31, of Texas City, was indicted on Thursday, Nov. 29, 2023, on aggravated perjury charges related to her testimony before a Jefferson County grand jury in late August regarding the murder of Javoris Potier, 30, of Houston.
Investigators say that she lied on the stand to support the alibi of her boyfriend, John Joseph "JJ" Gutierrez, 25, of Hitchcock.
Gutierrez was arrested on Nov. 14, 2023 and indicted on Thursday, Nov. 29, 2023, for the murder of Potier. He is being held on a $1 million bond in the Jefferson County Correctional Facility.
Wade testified before the grand jury that after Potier was shot she left the Laday Arena in a truck with one other man, who was driving. She testified that no one else was in the truck.
However, investigators say that her boyfriend, Gutierrez, was in the truck along with her, the driver and another man.
The driver and the other man testified before the grand jury that they were in the truck with both Gutierrez and Wade. The truck was owned by Gutierrez according to investigators.
Investigators also say one of the men who rode home with Gutierrez after the event revealed under sworn testimony that he threw the gun out the window of the moving truck.
Potier was shot while trying to stop a fight between a group of women, including Wade, who he was trying to "court," investigators said.
A witness gave investigators a description of the gun Gutierrez was allegedly seen running away with after the shooting.
Investigators say Gutierrez deleted images on his phone that matched the description of the gun. The digital images were able to be recovered through the search warrant process.
A serial number on the gun seen in the photos was linked to a purchase made by Gutierrez in July 2021, according to the affidavit.
Potier died at a Beaumont hospital on Sunday April 9, 2023, after being shot during a zydeco dance following a trail ride at the Laday Arena.
Potier was at the arena to celebrate with his friends and leaves behind a son and a newborn according to his family.
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