Man accused in deaths of 22 elderly women in Texas killed in prison by cellmate

Accused serial killer Billy Chemirmir appearing in court in Dallas, Texas (Shafkat Anowar/The Dallas Morning News via AP/PA)

A man accused of killing nearly two dozen elderly women and who was convicted last year in the deaths of two was killed on Tuesday morning by his cellmate at a Texas prison, an official said.

Billy Chemirmir, 50, was found dead in his cell, said Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Hannah Haney. She said Chemirmir’s cellmate, who is serving a sentence for murder, was identified as the assailant, but said she could not release the cellmate’s identity or how Chemirmir was killed.