Police Say Texas Woman Was Targeted in a Revenge Plot
When MaryJayne Collins began dating Dawayland Hurst in June 2024, the relationship reportedly appeared ordinary from the outside. Hurst was twenty-two years old and, according to people familiar with the couple, became involved in Collins’ life and the lives of her two young sons.
Four months later, Collins was dead inside her Seabrook, Texas apartment.
Investigators now allege that the relationship was never based on love. According to court records, Hurst may have pursued Collins as part of a revenge plan aimed at her former partner, Michael King, who was serving time in prison for the 2020 murder of Hurst’s half brother.
The case has raised disturbing questions about how a personal grudge may have turned into a months-long campaign of manipulation, abuse and violence.
The killing that investigators say started it all
In 2020, Diajwan Triplett, Hurst’s half brother, was shot and killed in Texas City. Michael King was later convicted in connection with the killing and sentenced to prison.
King was also the father of Collins’ two sons.
That connection is central to the case. Investigators believe Hurst deliberately approached Collins because of her relationship with King and because she was the mother of King’s children. Authorities allege that Hurst wanted to hurt King by targeting the people closest to him.
Collins, according to the theory outlined in court documents, became a target not because of anything she had done, but because of who she had once loved.
Friends reportedly saw signs of abuse
According to investigators, Hurst and Collins began dating in June 2024. Friends later told police that the relationship deteriorated quickly.
In the days before Collins’ death, she reportedly told people close to her that Hurst had been abusing her. Friends also said she showed them injuries that they believed were caused by him.
After Collins moved into an apartment on Repsdorph Road in Seabrook, investigators say the abuse became more serious. The apartment would later become the scene of her killing.
Police have not suggested that Collins played any role in the crime that sent King to prison. Instead, they believe Hurst used the relationship to reach King indirectly and punish him through his former partner and children.
A disturbing video call from prison
One of the most important pieces of evidence described in court records involves a video call on October 4, 2024, the day Collins died.
King, who was incarcerated, reportedly managed to contact Collins through a video call. Investigators say Hurst was present during the call.
According to the allegations, Hurst instructed one of Collins’ sons, who is also King’s child, to speak to his father on camera. The boy reportedly said, “Daddy, he mean, look what he fixin’ to do to me.”
Collins could allegedly be heard crying and telling Hurst to move away from the child. Investigators say Hurst then slapped the boy while King watched through the video call.
The recording was reportedly shared with other people. One account cited in reports said it was also sent to Collins’ grandmother.
The call ended, but the violence allegedly continued.
Collins was found dead hours later
Police were called to Collins’ apartment later that day. Her two sons were inside the home when officers arrived. The children were frightened but were not physically injured, according to reports.
Investigators initially believed Collins may have been shot. An autopsy later determined that she died from blunt force trauma and a stab wound to the upper body.
Authorities allege that Hurst was responsible for her death.
The case has not gone to trial, and no jury has yet ruled on the allegations. Hurst is presumed innocent unless convicted in court.
A three-week manhunt
After investigators connected Hurst to Collins’ death, a warrant was issued for his arrest. He remained at large for more than three weeks as law enforcement agencies searched for him.
Hurst was arrested on October 28, 2024, in Texas City. The arrest involved the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office, local police agencies and the United States Marshals Service.
At the time, he was reportedly out on bond in an unrelated case involving kidnapping and assault allegations.
Court records show that Hurst faces charges in several counties. Those charges include murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, resisting arrest, evading arrest, drug possession and family violence offenses connected to the alleged abuse of Collins.
The exact outcome of those cases will be decided in court.
A family left with unanswered questions
For Collins’ family, the alleged motive has made the loss even more difficult to understand.
Investigators do not believe she was randomly caught in a dispute between two men. They allege that she was intentionally chosen as part of a revenge plan connected to a murder that happened four years earlier.
Collins was a mother who had begun a new relationship and was trying to build a life for herself and her children. According to police, that relationship concealed a far darker purpose.
Her family is now seeking justice while waiting for the criminal case against Hurst to move forward. The allegations describe a relationship that may have been carefully constructed to cause pain to someone else, with Collins ultimately paying the highest price.
The case remains pending, and the charges against Hurst have not been proven in court.
Sources
Court records reported by ABC7 Chicago: Court records allege Dawayland Hurst killed MaryJane Collins to avenge half-brother’s murder – ABC7 Chicago
Reporting by The Mirror US: Texas man dated brother’s killer’s ex for revenge and brutally abused her children before stabbing her – The Mirror US
