FL - Kenneth Ellis, 61, shot to death at his North Port home, 29 March 2011

KaylynnCouture

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A 61-year-old world history teacher was shot and killed when he stepped outside to see who rang his doorbell.

North Port Police say the shooting happened around 10 p.m. Tuesday after William Kenneth Ellis opened the front door. Police say Ellis' wife told them there was no conversation, just gunshots. She said she saw two people wearing dark clothes and masks running from the area.

A police report said neighbors reported a dark-colored, four-door sedan left the area.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/03/3...ally-shot-outside-florida-home/#ixzz1ICGICytc
 
]Without a word, two masked assailants shot Ellis in the chest, leaving him for dead. The teacher and respected martial arts instructor at Manatee School for the Arts in Palmetto died a short time later in a killing that is as mysterious as it is chilling.

The killers, still on the loose late Wednesday, sped off in a dark sedan, police said.

North Port Police detectives were stationed throughout the day Wednesday at the Ellis home in the 2500 block of Albren Street, looking for clues and interviewing his wife, Elizabeth Materska-Ellis, who was in the home at the time of the shooting.

The killing triggered a broad investigation, although police officials did not respond to questions Wednesday about a possible motive for the killing, whether the shooting was a random act, or if there are any suspects.

Police records show that burglars ransacked Ellis' home in December, though authorities have not suggested that incident played a role in Tuesday's killing.

Snipped from http://www.heraldtribune.com/articl...=Police-have-no-suspects-in-teacher-s-killing
 
The ringing of the doorbell and the immediate gun shots reminds me so much of the "Lords of Chaos" case years ago in Fort Myers, Florida.

The "Lords of Chaos" were a group of teenagers who killed the band director at Riverdale High School. He, Mark Schwebes was the band director at the school. Mark caught the boys about to vandalize the school and confiscated I believe gas cans? They had burned down the historical Coca Cola building in downtown Fort Myers days earlier. The boys went to Mr. Schwebes home and one of the boys knocked on the door/rang the doorbell and when he opened the door, he was immediately shot and killed by the ringleader... Kevin Foster.

I hope that this isn't some kind of copycat crime... the case I just brought up happened in 1996 so I don't know? I just immediately thought about the Lords of Chaos when I read the circumstances of this case? LE should look into it though.
 
The ringing of the doorbell and the immediate gun shots reminds me so much of the "Lords of Chaos" case years ago in Fort Myers, Florida.

The "Lords of Chaos" were a group of teenagers who killed the band director at Riverdale High School. He, Mark Schwebes was the band director at the school. Mark caught the boys about to vandalize the school and confiscated I believe gas cans? They had burned down the historical Coca Cola building in downtown Fort Myers days earlier. The boys went to Mr. Schwebes home and one of the boys knocked on the door/rang the doorbell and when he opened the door, he was immediately shot and killed by the ringleader... Kevin Foster.

I hope that this isn't some kind of copycat crime... the case I just brought up happened in 1996 so I don't know? I just immediately thought about the Lords of Chaos when I read the circumstances of this case? LE should look into it though.

i thought of them too!
 
Interesting about the Lords of Chaos. I'd never heard of it before but I googled them and it's very similar.
 
Probably no connection at all but another teacher (retired), Matteo Giovanditto, age 58, was murdered last December in Celebration, FL. His killer has been arrested. He was originally from New England but had lived in a number of Florida towns after teaching at a boys' school in the Southwest. He lived alone and was found dead after neighbors reported not seeing him for several days. We have a thread. It was the first murder recorded in Celebration.
 
North Port seems to have a large Eastern European population. Mr. Ellis' wife was from Poland and is a professional with quite a CV. I'm very hopeful that she's not also in danger. A resort in North Port has recently changed hands to public ownership in a deal that came in far lower than most expected. Not sure at all if this has any possible connection to Mr. Ellis' death:

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20101110/breaking/101119986
 
Detectives Impound Slain Teachers Car

Detectives towed away a car belonging to a slain Manatee County teacher and searched his North Port home for several hours Thursday as they continue to investigate the killing of 61-year-old W. Kenneth Ellis.

North Port detectives took a Toyota Camry from the home of Ellis and his wife, Elizabeth Materska-Ellis, to be searched for fingerprints, DNA evidence and other clues, authorities said.

North Port Police would not comment on what prompted the car to be impounded more than 36 hours after the killing.

Snipped from: http://www.heraldtribune.com/articl...=UPDATE-Few-clues-found-in-teacher-s-slaying-
 
Search Warrant Offers Details Of W. Kenneth Ellis' Death

]Detectives took bank records, cell phones, computers, a GPS device and even a bottle of prescription skin cream during a search of the North Port home where a Manatee County school teacher was fatally shot last week.

A search warrant inventory shows 49 items were retrieved from W. Kenneth Ellis' home and car in the days following his killing, suggesting that authorities are researching various aspects of the 61-year-old man's personal life to find out why he was killed.

Detectives say they are working 11 leads, although Estrada would not say how they were generated or whether they offer strong conclusions about Ellis' death.

Snipped from: http://www.heraldtribune.com/articl...-dig-into-life-of-slain-Manatee-teacher-Ellis
 
This case has really been bothering me. Thank you for updating us KayLynn. I didn't realize that the man left six children. Oh my....so sad. The things taken in the SW seem very strange. A prescription skin cream--could he have had a melanoma and paid someone to kill him? Or was it merely a regular topical cream? A briefcase from the attic and videos, photos, notebooks and prescription pills from the house? Could Ellis have been hiding something terrible? Or is that just common practice?

And I'm still totally confused as to just who stated that he heard the doorbell, checked the window and then opened the door to be shot by two men dressed all in black. The man died of his wounds. Was he able to first tell his wife or the paramedics or did his wife follow him to the door and see the men herself?

This is a very disturbing case.
 
Eighteen pages of remembrances...the man touched a lot of lives in a positive way. Who in the world could have wanted this man dead? Was it the wrong house?

I see that he died on the way to the hospital. I wonder if he was able to give the paramedics the information that we've read about the assailants?
 
Kenneth Ellis' widow speak out:

http://www.winknews.com/Local-Flori...dow-of-murdered-North-Port-teacher-speaks-out

Widow of murdered North Port teacher speaks out
May 8, 2011


"For the first time, we're hearing from the widow of a North Port man murdered at his front door. Kenneth Ellis, who taught in Manatee County, was gunned down on March 29 at his home. North Port Police said they have more than 110 leads but no arrests. Kenneth's widow said her life is a mess. Between dealing with her husband's death and knowing she hasn't been cleared in his murder, Ella Ellis told WINK News in an exclusive interview, that she is taking things one day at a time....."

More at link (including video of interview)
 
A second search, which was reported in late May:

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20110525/ARTICLE/110529648

North Port home of slain teacher Kenneth Ellis is searched again

"After taking dozens of personal items during an initial search, homicide detectives conducted a second search of the home of slain teacher W. Kenneth Ellis in the week after the killing. But authorities are not revealing what they found or any contents they may have confiscated during the second search....."

and

"....North Port Police Capt. Robert Estrada, who was unavailable for comment Wednesday, previously said that investigators would scrutinize Ellis' past to find a possible link to a suspect. "What we have to do is dig into this guy's life," Estrada said. "His personal life, his family life, his business associates. Everybody." So far, however, they have not disclosed why they conducted a second search or what they may have found. The house is now for sale...."

more at link (2 pg. article)
 
In checking this case, I found an article I don't see posted. This gives a full description of the sequence of the crime...provided by Mr. Ellis' wife. I had not seen this before:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/42586...n-beloved-florida-schoolteacher/#.ToPllWBqIlc

Who gunned down beloved Florida schoolteacher?

"...“The grieving process is so much harder for me [Ellis' wife]. To know I’m on the list of suspects, even though I did the polygraph test ... makes my life ... difficult....”

and

"....The real-life murder mystery began at about 10 on the evening of March 29, authorities say. After a long day at work, Ken Ellis was dozing in front of the television with his wife of two years when their doorbell rang. He got up to answer it, but found no one at the door, EE told [TODAY’s Meredith] Vieira. Curious, she joined him. Thinking that perhaps a neighbor needed assistance, they looked again. Then, just as they began closing the door, two men in black, with only their eyes visible, forced the door open, she said. “In split seconds they extended their hands and [shot] my husband,” she told Vieira. The gunmen were silent — “no words, nothing” — and in the shock of the moment, she didn’t even notice whether both were armed, she said.

She screamed, she said, loud enough to rouse the neighbors. Her mortally wounded husband’s last request was that she call 911, and she raced into the computer room and dialed, pleading with the dispatcher to hurry. But it was already too late...."

More at link (plus video)
 
Interesting, they were only married 2 years. If she did it, the gun was well hidden- unlike the recent Fire Chief murder where the gun and bullets easily found. Later she could have removed it from the home before the seond search.
 
An arrest!! So Kenneth Ellis died not knowing that he'd saved his wife's life. So sad.

http://www.bradenton.com/2011/10/05/3549435/north-port-police-to-announce.html

Man, 19, charged with killing popular Manatee School for the Arts teacher

"A 19-year-old man has been charged with first-degree murder in the March 29 slaying of Kenneth Ellis, a popular teacher at Manatee School for the Arts. Katrelle D'mario Johnson admitted to shooting Ellis when he answered the door at his North Port home, North Port police said. Investigators were seeking a second suspect...."

and

"....Johnson and another person may have seen Ellis' wife in a window and thought she was home alone. They rang the bell and may have been surprised when Ellis answered the door, officials said. Police connected Johnson to the crime from a gun found near the home...."

and

"....Johnson was already in jail in connection with June 21 slaying of Robert Mann in Sarasota when investigators developed evidence that linked him with the Ellis slaying, officials said..."

more at link (and mug shot)
 

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