Houston Man Dies by Suicide After Standoff at Historic Church
“The homicide investigation remains open and had to do with a woman,” Fayette County Sheriff’s Office Lt. David Beyer said following a sequence of events in Central Texas.
The man who died by suicide Tuesday after an armed standoff at a historic Catholic church near Round Top has been identified as 56-year-old Djone Reeves of Houston, according to the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office. Reeves was wanted for questioning regarding the death of 59-year-old Arik Lerner, an antique dealer from San Diego, California. Beyer stated that the two men were acquaintances.
Discovery of San Diego Antique Dealer Kicks Off Inquiry
Deputies discovered Lerner unresponsive on Thursday, Oct. 22, lying in a driveway in the 2200 block of South State Highway 237, north of Round Top. Emergency personnel pronounced him dead at the scene, and an autopsy by the Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office subsequently ruled the death a homicide caused by a gunshot wound.
Marburger Farm dedicated its 2026 Fall Show in memory of Lerner, honoring him in an Instagram post as “a beloved dealer, friend, and longtime member of our Marburger Farm community.” A celebration of life for Lerner was held at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 23, at Blue Hills in Round Top.
Armed Rideshare Ride Precedes Multi-Agency Standoff
The standoff unfolded Tuesday, Oct. 27, at St. Martin’s Catholic Church along State Highway 237. The church is known as the world’s smallest active Catholic church. Fayette County Sheriff Keith Korenek noted that investigators learned Tuesday that Reeves intended to travel to the church from Houston using a rideshare service. Upon dropping him off, the driver alerted authorities after reporting that Reeves had held him at gunpoint during the trip. The driver was released and was not physically injured.
Fayette County deputies located Reeves inside the structure, triggering a multi-agency response that included Texas Rangers and a regional Special Response Team comprising tactical officers from Fayette, Austin, and Colorado counties. Negotiations continued for several hours before concluding when Reeves took his own life. Authorities confirmed the public faced no danger during the incident.
Decades-Long Criminal Record Unspools Across Texas Courts
Reeves carried a lengthy criminal history spanning nearly four decades. Galveston County records indicate he received a 14-year sentence for the 1987 attempted murder of a police officer, serving roughly four years of that term. Collin County court documents show Djone Renoir Reeves was convicted by a jury on April 12, 1991, for delivering a controlled substance—a felony—and sentenced to 60 years in state prison for an offense committed on June 1, 1990. Department of Corrections files listed a scheduled release date of March 29, 2018.
Subsequent entries in the Harris County District Clerk records show a May 12, 2011, arrest for driving while intoxicated, resulting in a no-contest plea and sentencing on May 27, 2011, alongside a brief parole violator hold. Additional records show another DWI arrest on Dec. 24, 2025, followed by release on a $100 bond and a case resolution involving a plea and sentence on May 12, 2026.
