Austin murder suspect re-arrested after posting bail

AUSTIN, Texas – A suspect in a fatal stabbing in South Austin in 2021 is back in jail just over a week after being released on bail from a previous arrest.

A task force led by U.S. Marshals arrested 22-year-old Mithovar Christopher Antoine Jr. in Temple on Thursday, Sept. 12, after Austin police issued a warrant for his arrest. He was released from the Bell County Jail on $150,000 bail and without conditions.

On September 18, a new arrest warrant was issued on the aggravated felony charge and it was recommended that no bail be paid for Antoine. On September 24, the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force found Antoine in Temple and arrested him again.

Antoine is accused of stabbing 23-year-old Nikolas Martinez to death in July 2021. Martinez called police and drove to a convenience store on Mariposa Drive near Interstate 35. However, when they arrived, they found Martinez on the ground outside the store. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Austin police said homicide detectives received a statement from Antoine in which he said he stabbed the victim because he wanted to steal his car.

A month after Martinez's death, family members offered an $8,000 reward to catch the person responsible for his death. The task force said Antoine was a resident of Temple and investigators were able to catch him.

Martinez's death was Austin's 48th homicide of 2021.

Antoine is currently in custody in Travis County Jail.