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By Robert Alexander
Senior Crime & Court Reporter
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A Dallas motel employee accused of beheading his manager with a machete during a workplace dispute is facing a capital murder charge.
Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, 37, has been charged with killing 50-year-old Chandra Moul Nagamallaiah on September 10, 2025, at the Downtown Suites Motel, Dallas police told Newsweek.
Cobos-Martinez is a Cuban national with prior criminal convictions who had been ordered removed from the United States but was released from federal custody after Cuba refused to take him back.
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Newsweek contacted the Dallas County Clerk's Office and DHS for additional comment via email outside of normal office hours on Friday.
Why It Matters
The killing has reverberated beyond Dallas because of the questions it raises about immigration enforcement and public safety.
His case underscores the challenges U.S. authorities face when deportation is not possible, placing the incident at the intersection of local tragedy, federal policy, and national debate over how to handle undocumented immigrants with serious criminal records.
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What to Know
According to a statement emailed to Newsweek from Corbin Rubinson, senior public information officer for the Dallas Police Department: "On September 10, 2025, at about 9:30 a.m., Dallas Police responded to a stabbing call in the 3400 block of Samuell Boulevard. The preliminary investigation determined that the suspect cut the victim with an edged weapon several times. Dallas Fire-Rescue responded to the scene, where the victim died. The suspect is in custody and charges are pending.
"The victim was identified as 50-year-old Chandra Moul Nagamallaiah. Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, 37, was arrested and charged with Capital Murder in connection with this case," he added.
Dallas County jail records show Cobos-Martinez is being held without bond on both the capital murder charge and an immigration detainer.
Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public Affairs at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, added in the statement: "This sick alien beheaded this man in front of his wife and child and proceeded to kick the victim's head around. This gruesome, savage slaying of a victim at a motel by Yordanis Cobos-Martinez was completely preventable if this criminal illegal alien was not released by the Biden Administration because Cuba would not take him back."
Machete and Beheading
CBS News Texas reported, citing an arrest affidavit, that Cobos-Martinez—who is a maintenance worker at the Downtown Suites Motel, 3422 Samuell Boulevard, Dallas—became upset after motel manager, Chandra Moul Nagamallaiah, told him not to use a broken washing machine. The instruction was relayed through another employee instead of being directed to Cobos-Martinez, which appeared to anger him.
Cobos-Martinez retrieved a machete and attacked Nagamallaiah, who fled toward the motel office where his wife and son were present. Both tried to intervene but were pushed aside. The assault ended when Nagamallaiah was decapitated, after which the suspect placed the head in a dumpster.
Newsweek has not independently reviewed the affidavit.
Dallas Fire-Rescue personnel reported seeing him fleeing, covered in blood and still carrying the machete, and he was arrested a short distance from the scene.
Officers later recovered the weapon, along with Nagamallaiah's cell phone and key card.
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Immigration Status and Prior Record
Dexter Henson, public affairs officer at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in an official department statement emailed to Newsweek, Friday, September 12, 2025, said: "This barbaric criminal was released because Cuba would not accept him because of his criminal history.
"U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) today announced it lodged a detainer for the federal arrest and removal of a criminal illegal alien from Cuba who was taken into custody by local authorities in Dallas, Texas on homicide charges.
"On September 10, 2025, Yordanis Cobos-Martinez—an illegal alien from Cuban with a rap sheet including child sex abuse, grand theft of a motor vehicle, false imprisonment and carjacking—was arrested by Dallas Police Department at a motel in Dallas for murder."
Court and jail records reviewed by CBS Texas show Cobos-Martinez had prior arrests for auto theft in Florida and charges of indecency with a child and assault in Houston.
Video on Social Media
A video purporting to show part of the attack has been circulating on social media. The footage, which runs for 1 minute 33 seconds, appears to capture the killing from a static CCTV camera in the courtyard of the Motel.
This footage, which has not been independently verified by Newsweek has been shared in excess of 110,000 times.
Community Response
The crime has left the local community reeling. Nagamallaiah, who managed the motel and lived there with his family, was described as hardworking and attentive.
One witness told CBS Texas, "This is not normal to happen. It's sick, disgusting ... I'm speechless, it's out of the norm and it's mind-blowing."
What People Are Saying
Witnesses, describing the attack as "shocking" to CBS Texas, said: "He chased him from 108 all the way to the office. The man was trying to get into the office to tell his family."
Dexter Henson, Public Affairs Officer at U.S. Department of Homeland Security in an official statment emailed to Newsweek, said September 12, 2025: "Cobos-Martinez used a machete to behead a merchant he had an argument within front of the merchant's spouse and child. Reportedly, Cobos-Martinez then kicked the head of the victims 'around like a soccer ball.' ICE has lodged the detainer with the Dallas County Jail, where this criminal illegal alien is being held."
Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, added: "This is exactly why we are removing criminal illegal aliens to third countries. President Trump and Secretary Noem are no longer allowing barbaric criminals to indefinitely remain in America. If you come to our country illegally, you could end up in Eswatini, Uganda, South Sudan, or CECOT."
What Happens Next
The case now moves through the courts, where Cobos-Martinez faces a capital murder charge that could result in the death penalty or life without parole. Federal immigration authorities have lodged a detainer, ensuring he remains in custody. At the same time, the killing is expected to draw continued political scrutiny as lawmakers question why he was released from ICE custody earlier this year, meaning the criminal trial, immigration proceedings, and policy debate will likely unfold in parallel.
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