Woman butt-dials voicemail exposing plot to help accused killer dispose of missing flight attendant’s body
Joni Thomas has been accused of helping her friend dispose of a flight attendant’s body after a butt-dial voicemail allegedly captured them plotting the cover-up. Tarrant County Jail
A 62-year-old Texas woman has been charged in connection with the cover-up of a suspected murder after a voicemail, believed to have been accidentally recorded, allegedly captured her and the accused killer discussing the disposal of the victim’s body.
Joni Thomas was arrested and charged with tampering with evidence in the suspected killing of Rana Nofal Soluri, a 47-year-old Envoy Air flight attendant who was last seen in March. According to an arrest affidavit obtained by NBC DFW, Thomas is accused of helping Dennis William Day, 66, transport and dump Soluri’s body after he allegedly strangled her in his Fort Worth home.
Investigators say Day confessed to the killing, claiming he attacked Soluri during an argument after she filmed him acting erratically and threatened to call 911. Day reportedly told police he panicked and strangled her, then stuffed her body in a trash bin.
He allegedly called Thomas for help after the murder. Authorities believe the pair used her pickup truck to transport Soluri’s body about 70 miles to Bowie, Texas, where they dumped it off a bridge.
A key piece of evidence came from a voicemail investigators believe was the result of a “butt-dial” from Thomas’ phone. The recording captured voices — presumed to be Day and Thomas — struggling with a heavy object. A man is heard saying, “Hey … help me,” “Make sure the lid’s on,” and “I got you messed up in this.”
Initially, Thomas denied any involvement and claimed Day never used her truck. But she later changed her story, admitting she was with Day and that he stopped at a bridge during their trip — though she claimed she had been asleep for part of the ride. Investigators also discovered that both had left their phones behind at Day’s home, which authorities believe was a deliberate move to create a false alibi.
“This is a clear effort by both [Day] and [Thomas] to deceive law enforcement and make it appear like they never left [Day’s] house,” the arrest warrant states.
Thomas was taken into custody on August 26 and later released on bond.
Soluri, who was recovering from minor surgery, had been out of work since late March. In June, coworkers at Envoy Air reported her missing after she failed to return to work and could not be reached. Police conducted a welfare check at Day’s home on June 10, where he told them Soluri — his roommate of about a year — had been missing for months.
On June 23, investigators returned and Day allowed a search of his property. Surveillance footage from March 21 showed him dragging what appeared to be a lifeless body into his backyard. He later confessed to the killing and said he dumped Soluri’s body off a bridge and disposed of her phone in a nearby river. He also led police to her gun, which has since been recovered.
Despite extensive searches near Bowie, Soluri’s body has not been found. Authorities suspect recent flooding may have carried her remains downstream.
Her sister, Nez, told NBCDFW the family is devastated. “It’s been torture,” she said. “Every other day, I keep dreaming or wishing… maybe she bumped her head, had amnesia – something.”
Day remains in the Tarrant County Jail, charged with murder. His bond is set at $200,000.
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