Ashley Bush, an Arkansas woman who was 31 weeks pregnant, was found dead in Missouri from a suspected gunshot wound, officials said.
Benton County Sheriff’s Office
A pregnant woman who was picked up in Arkansas for what she thought was a chat was found murdered in Missouri, cops say.
Her unborn child, according to v Benton County Sheriff’s Office in Arkansaswas found dead elsewhere McDonald County in southwest Missouri.
The deaths of Ashley Bush and her daughter Valkyrie Grace Willis led to the arrest of Amber Waterman and Jamie Waterman, a couple from Jane, Missouri. They have been charged with first-degree kidnapping and additional charges are pending, Benton County Sheriff Sean Holloway said at a briefing Thursday, Nov. 3.
Holloway called it “one of the most horrific cases” he’s been involved with.
Bush, a 33-year-old woman who was 31 weeks of pregnancy, met a woman named Lucy online while she was looking for a job, the sheriff’s office said. Lucy picked up Bush at the store in Maysville on Monday, October 31, to take her to an interview in Bentonville, Arkansas, but Bush never showed up for that interview.
Bush was reported missing on Tuesday.
Authorities said “Lucy” was a fictitious identity for Amber Waterman, and her husband is also believed to be involved in the crime, Benton County District Attorney Nathan Smith said.
Bush’s fetus was found dead on Wednesday, Nov. 2, officials said. Officers found Bush dead from a suspected gunshot wound the next day.
Bush was a mother of three childrenat ages 8, 7 and 2, according to KHBS.
Authorities have not said how the fetus was removed from Bush’s body or where in McDonald County it was found. Benton County, Arkansas is about 35 miles south of McDonald County, Missouri.
“It’s just a reminder that there’s evil in the world, people do evil things,” Smith said. “It’s unthinkable that someone would prey on a pregnant woman at her most vulnerable, but unfortunately that’s the world we live in.”
It is not yet clear if the killings were in Arkansas or Missouri. A man accused of killing a pregnant woman in Arkansas could be charged with two counts of murder, Smith said.
Josh Willis, Bush’s fiance, said in a statement to KHBS that he was “disgusted by this whole situation.”
“I want Ashley and Valkyrie alive and home with us,” Willis said. “I can’t believe there are people who would do something like that. She was a wonderful mother, a wonderful wife, a very sociable, caring and kind person. They didn’t deserve any of this. There are three amazing kids here who just lost their mother/best friend and little sister.’
