A Fort Worth man was arrested Monday in connection with the stabbing death of a 24-year-old whose body turned up in a shallow grave — more than three weeks after his family first reported him missing.
Chase Cook, 23, now faces a murder charge alongside Alexander James Nicholas, 23, who was taken into custody in late December. Together, they’re accused in the death of John Richardson, a young man whose disappearance set off a frantic, 20-day search that ended in the worst possible way. This case isn’t just a tragedy for one family. It’s a reminder of how long the space between “missing” and “answers” can stretch — and how brutal that wait really is.
A Party, a Disappearance, and 20 Days of Silence
Richardson was last seen leaving a party on November 30. His family reported him missing two days later, on December 2, after he failed to turn up or make contact. Then came the waiting. Twenty days of it. His body was eventually discovered on December 22 in a wooded area in Denton County — buried in a shallow grave.
It’s hard to overstate what that timeline means for people who loved him. Three weeks of not knowing, of hoping, of following any lead that came in — and then this.
Two Arrests, One Disputed Account
Nicholas was the first to be charged, picked up in late December shortly after Richardson’s remains were found. His account of events, according to investigators, doesn’t hold up. He reportedly claimed he had dropped Richardson off alive along a road somewhere between Alliance Boulevard and a Buc-ee’s — a detail that, on its face, raises more questions than it answers.
Cook’s arrest Monday added another layer. Fort Worth police allege he played a direct role in the stabbing that killed Richardson. Both men now face murder charges. Neither has been publicly linked to a clear motive, at least not yet.
What Comes Next
Still, the legal process is only beginning. Charges are allegations, and both men are entitled to their day in court. But for the Richardson family, the arrest of a second suspect likely means less about legal proceedings and more about something simpler: that someone is still paying attention.
Fort Worth police have not publicly detailed the full circumstances surrounding the alleged stabbing or how investigators connected Cook to the crime. What is known is that his arrest came roughly two weeks after Nicholas’s — suggesting the investigation has been moving quickly, even if the answers came far too late for one family’s Christmas.
John Richardson was 24 years old. He went to a party on a Saturday night in November and never made it home. Whatever happened between that night and the moment investigators found him in the dirt of Denton County — that’s what a jury will now have to decide.
