An Arizona man who was convicted of beating ex-girlfriend to death and leaving their infant child on the side of the road will spend the rest of his life in prison.
A Maricopa County judge handed down the life sentence to Antwaun T. Ware after he pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder and one count of felony child endangerment, court records show.
The victims in the case, Jasmine Rain Dunbar and their infant child were reportedly on their way back from a paternity test on March 6, 2018, when the murder occurred. According to court documents, Ware beat Dunbar to death before setting her on fire and abandoning the child on the side of the road.
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According to a news release from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office a couple was driving in the area near 83rd Avenue and Camelback Road in Phoenix when they spotted a child in a car seat on the side of the road. They pulled over where they found the 7-month-old child, along with an I.D. belonging to Dunbar and several other items. The couple quickly called 911 and officers responded to the scene.
“After tracking down Ms. Dunbar’s family members, Phoenix Police learned that on the same day, the baby was found at the side of the road, Ware was on his way with Ms. Dunbar to take a paternity test,” the release states. “Phoenix Police detectives retraced Ware’s steps and discovered he drove to a field near 107th Avenue and Camelback Road where he killed Ms. Dunbar and set her body on fire.”
According to a probable cause statement obtained by Law&Crime Ware and Dunbar were last seen at about 9 p.m. on March 6, when the two were going to get a paternity test done. The couple found the child on the side of the road around 10 p.m. that same night.
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“[He] admitted he had a physical altercation with Jasmine and punched her a number of times with his fist,” the document states. “He claimed that he left her in a field in the area of 107th Avenue and Camelback. He claimed she was still alive then. He then drove away with [the child] still in his backseat. He said that he panicked and dropped [the child] off in the area of [redacted] because he saw people nearby and believed they would find her and take care of her.”
Ware reportedly told police that returned to the scene where he claimed to have left Dunbar alive and decided to try and get rid of the body.
“He put a piece of paper on the body and then poured gasoline on her, the document states. “He then set it afire with a cigarette. He watched as Jasmine burned and the fire put itself out.”
Ware said when he arrived back at the scene where he left the child he saw a number of police cars, which is when he “took a back way” to get to his then-current girlfriend’s home.
Dunbar’s body was soon located and Ware was placed under arrest.
* Original Article:
https://www.themirror.com/news/us-news/mother-beaten-death-ex-boyfriend-963145.amp
