Ellis Bell Thornhill, 38, has been indicted by the Hamilton County Grand Jury on first-degree murder charges in the Feb. 7, 2013, death of 37-year-old Lucius Moss. His body was found inside a burned duplex at 1802 Wilcox Blvd.
Thornhill is also facing charges of especially aggravated kidnapping, aggravated arson, aggravated assault and abuse of a corpse.
The Chattanooga Fire Department received the initial alarm at 5:50 a.m. and responded with four fire companies to the duplex. Firefighters from Station 4 were the first on the scene. Captain David Brooks said the whole front of the A side of the duplex was engulfed in fire with flames shooting out the windows. A couple who lived in the B side of the duplex could not confirm for firefighters whether their neighbor was still inside or not.
As other fire companies began to arrive, Captain Brooks said the firefighters attacked the fire through the large front window. After partially knocking down the fire, the firefighters crawled through the window while other firefighters kicked the front door open. While some firefighters worked to get the blaze under control, other firefighters searched the apartment for victims. Moments later, Captain Brooks said firefighters found a man's body on the kitchen floor.
The cause of death and the cause of the fire had been under investigation since the incident.
Thornhill was charged in 2013 with an armed robbery at the Exxon at 4004 Hixson Pike after an officer spotted the car that was driven from the scene.
In that case, he was charged with aggravated robbery, evading arrest and possession of a controlled substance.
In the incident, an officer was flagged down by a cashier at the Exxon, who said she was robbed by a black male who fled in a white four-door sedan. The officer caught up with the vehicle at Atlanta Drive and North Access Road, but the driver refused to stop. There was a pursuit that ended at Stuart Street.
Police observed scattered loose bills in the vehicle along with a black scarf. The clerk said the robber was wearing a black scarf. The robber was wearing a black scarf.
There was also a baggie containing a white substance.
Thornhill entered a guilty plea to robbery last March 3 and was given a six-year prison sentence.
Thornhill has an extensive record that also includes arrests for theft, assault, drugs, gambling and traffic charges.