Crystal Jackson and Britney Cosby

The father of one of the two Houston women found dead next to a dumpster last week has been arrested and charged with 2 counts of tampering with evidence.

James Cosby, 45, father of 24-year-old Britney Cosby (above right), was taken into custody Thursday. The bodies of Britney and her girlfriend, Crystal Jackson, 24, were found next to a dumpster behind a convenience store in Port Bolivar, Texas last Friday morning.

The murders occurred in Cosby’s home, ABC13 in Houston reports.

Crystal Jackson and Britney Cosby

Cosby was among the mourners attending a vigil for his daughter on Wednesday, Mar. 12. “You can’t really put something like this into words,” he said in an interview with ABC13.

Cosby is being held in the Galveston County jail on $500,000 bond. More charges may be pending against him.

Jackson’s family members said the women were killed after they returned from Galveston where they attended Mardi Gras.

“They didn’t have to die. Whatever it was, it was petty,” said Cosby’s family member Leonard Freeman.

Police said Jackson was beaten then shot to death, while Cosby died of bunt trauma to the head.

Authorities believe they were killed elsewhere and their bodies were moved to the location where they were found.

The two women had dated for 2 years. They lived together at Cosby’s great grandmother’s home.

Anyone with information about the murders or the stolen vehicle is asked to call the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office tip line at 866-248-8477.