‘When in Rome’: San Angelo Man Indicted for Robbery, Kidnapping Over Cat Dispute

SAN ANGELO, TX— A San Angelo man has been indicted after robbing, kidnapping, and assaulting a couple over a cat.

Daniel Betell, 19, has been indicted by a Tom Green County grand jury on two counts of aggravated robbery, two counts of aggravated kidnapping with a deadly weapon, and one count of burglary of a habitation.

According to court documents, on Dec. 21, 2024, a San Angelo police officer was dispatched to the 5800 block of Sherwood Way regarding a robbery. When the officer arrived, she learned from the victim that an alleged robbery occurred at Raintree Apartments, located at 2228 Valleyview Boulevard.

Field interviews were conducted with the victim and a witness. 

In the interview with the victim, she stated that on the day of the incident, she received a phone call from the defendant, identified as Betell, that he wanted to get a cat from her. Betell told the victim that he would break into her apartment to get the cat.

Later that day, the victim picked up the witness from work and dropped him off at the apartment. Shortly after, she received a text message from the witness telling her to come home. Once the victim arrived and walked into the apartment, she observed the witness sitting in a chair. Betell came from around a corner and threw her over the couch. He began asking where the cat was.

Betell demanded her phone and made her give him her password. The victim also noticed that Betell had a knife. She refused to tell him where the cat was, but Betell held the knife to the witness’s throat, saying it was him or the cat. This made the victim tell Betell that the cat was with her sister at her grandmother’s house.

Betell said that if the two told anyone what happened, he would have someone murder the victim’s family.

The victim and witness, under threat from Betell, drove to the house where the cat was located. Betell was texting the victim’s sister, telling her to bring the cat outside. He also told the victim and witness to act normally. While driving, Betell told the two that he had a gun and if they did anything “funny,” he would shoot them.

Once they had the cat, the three drove back to the apartment. Once inside, Betell began picking up Christmas gifts and demanded to know what they were. He allegedly only took a gift that was a cat bed. Betell also took the victim’s television.

When the witness was interviewed, his statement matched what the victim told the investigator, but he also added that Betell gathered items from the apartment in a trash bag and that he stated, “I didn’t even want to rob y’all, but you know what, when in Rome.”

The witness also added that when he answered the door before the victim came back, Betell lunged at him, grabbed his throat, and began punching him in the stomach. He pushed the witness against a mirror, which caused him to fall into a trash can and break a vase. The investigator observed injuries on the witness that were consistent with his statement.

On Dec. 31, 2024, the investigator spoke with another individual who said he spoke with Betell about six days after the incident on FaceTime. He observed that Betell had a black eye and asked him what happened. Betell said that he did not trust the person, and only that he had “got into it” with the witness. He also said that he barely touched the victim and said that no knife was involved.

Betell was arrested on Jan. 29, 2025, and is currently an inmate in the Tom Green County Jail, being held on a $280,000 bond.