A Houston man was sentenced to life after a jury quickly convicted him in the 2024 killing of his estranged girlfriend in Fort Bend County.
FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas — A Fort Bend County jury took less than two hours to convict a Houston man of murder in the 2024 shooting death of his estranged girlfriend, leading to a life sentence.
District Attorney Brian M. Middleton said Anthony Sorel Haywood, 44, was sentenced May 14, 2026, by 434th District Court Judge J. Christian Becerra after a three-week trial.
Editor’s note: The video in this article is from a previous report.
Prosecutors said Coralyn “Shae” Hunt, 38, was a mother raising a young son and two teenage foster daughters. She had been in an on-and-off relationship with Haywood for about five years and had been trying to leave him, according to evidence presented in court.
In the weeks before her death, Hunt was planning to move and told friends and family not to share her new address with Haywood.
Authorities said Haywood confronted Hunt late Feb. 18, 2024, after learning she had been talking to another man. Around 2:50 a.m. the next day, Hunt’s 17-year-old foster daughter found her shot to death on a bedroom floor. Her 7-year-old son was asleep in the same bed, which prosecutors said was covered in blood.
Investigators said cameras inside the home had been disabled, but surveillance from the surrounding area helped identify a vehicle of interest. Haywood became a suspect based on that vehicle and his relationship with Hunt.
A witness later told investigators that Haywood called her the day of the killing and said he had shot Hunt.
Detectives used flock camera images, nearby store surveillance and FBI analysis of phone records to place Haywood near the scene. Prosecutors said his alibi to investigators was disproven by that evidence.
During the punishment phase, prosecutors presented Haywood’s prior criminal history, including prison sentences for robbery and aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Chief Domestic Violence Prosecutor Sunni Mitchell said the jury’s quick verdict reflected the brutality of the crime and credited investigators and partner agencies for building the case.
Middleton said the life sentence was a just outcome, though it cannot ease the loss felt by Hunt’s family. Under state law, Haywood will not be eligible for parole until he is over 70 years old.
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