They soon determined that Ashlea Harris had suffered blunt force trauma to her face and head, her throat had been cut, and her body partially burned. In the meantime, Detective Pate, Cedillos partner, made contact with Mallory. Examiners Officer, performed the Autopsy on Ashleas body. Police had to establish if they were involved in Ashlea's death what the motive was. Another apartment in the complex was on fire. In addition, we got Ashleas DNA on this gun that was in Carter Cervantes car, said Kevin Rousseau. Detective Cedillo spoke to Chris Cravey, who was Ashleas boss at American Eagle, and asked if he knew anyone who drove a black Infinity. She admitted to not locking the back door the night of the theft. A break came when one of Harris neighbors told police that on the morning of the murder, he noticed a black, two-door Infiniti parked in the apartment complexs parking lot which didnt belong to any of the residents. Chris looked at Clarence'spersonnel fileanddiscovered thatwhen Carterhired him, she changed his Social Security number and his name in the system so that it would not be detected or show up any red flags. Does Alan Cumming Really Live in a Scottish Castle? However, their jobs did not last long when they were allegedly found suspects of a robbery that took place in the store on August 24, 2014. We may earn a commission from links on this page. He asked if she would be willing to go downtown to be interviewed and she agreed. This was most likely a lighter and the accelerant was rubbing alcohol. Ashlea immediately contacted loss prevention, Chris Cravey, and the district manager. Firefighters found her strangled and burned body early in the morning on Nov. 28. He moved to Ft. Worth and reunited with Carter, who allegedly falsified his social security number to cheat the system and get him employment at the Ft. Worth store. Prosecutors say Cervantez and her. He followed them as Mallory drove to the Hulen Mall. When Detective Cedillo entered the coordinates it came up to a specific location near Lueders, Texas. In August 2014, a hooded burglar had stolen $18,000 from the American Eagle Hulen Mall store following Texas Sales Tax Holiday Weekend. Police believed she saw them talking with Clarence in the car park and walked the two miles home. They also found another lock labeled lock picking practice lock. Harris was found dead in her apartment several hours later when firefighters responded to a fire alarm. She told Chris police were asking about an Infiniti G35. Mallory drove the car to another mall exit. At Carter's Trial, her Defense was that she was not involved in Ashlea's death. In reviewing the malls video surveillance Detective Cedillo saw Cervantez enter the mall wearing the same clothing he had seen her leave her apartment in. By 2011, she was an assistant manager at an American Eagle Outfitters store at Fort Worths Hulen Mall. He was able to unlock the trunk of Mallorys Cadillac using keys found in the black Infiniti. The surveillance video from the front of the American Eagle store showed that at around 2amonthe 29th of November, someone with a covered face knelt down next to the lock on the gate and attempted to unlock and raise the gate.They were unsuccessful as the locks had been changed. A friend of hers, Alexis Torres came over. Theyare in our work places, our friendship groups and sometimes even our homes. A bottle of it found near the body. He testified that he wokethat morning when he heardthe sound of the fire alarms. Carter did hold this against Ashlea, because Ashlea was the one that turned them in, said Groen. Powered by Shopify. She was later found in her apartment complex. Cervantez claimed that the grave was not for Ashlea Harris, but for her. Investigators obtained a search warrant for Cervantes and Mallorys apartment and found a shopping receipt from November 21 for shovels, gloves, duct tape, rope, and a tarp. FWPD Fort Worth Police Department FORT WORTH Pictures of tools that could be used to pick locks, the front cover of the book Practical Lock. The Court heard that inJune 2014, Ashleawas appointed to run the store while Chris was on medical leave. The M.E. Ashlea was found lying face down on the floor of her bedroom. The Prosecutor,Kevin Rousseau,told the Jury: "There are no good murders. Who Killed Her? Clarence's phone-We left it. It turns out that Clarence was also a former employee of American Eagle. FORT WORTH, Texas -- A woman whose burned body was found in her Fort Worth apartment Thanksgiving weekend had been strangled and beaten, allegedly by former co-workers, according to court documents. <p>Carter Carol Cervantez, 27, enters court on Tuesday, May 17, 2016, with defense attorneys Steve Gordon, right, and Bill Ray, not pictured. Malloy is being held in a Potter County Jail and will be. It was only at that point that Chris discovered that it was Carter who had hired Clarence and he found out that Clarence hadpreviously worked at an American Eagle store in Amarillo and was listed in the American Eagle system as non-rehireable." with the Tarrant County Medical Examiners Office testified to Ashlea Harriss cause of death. Cravey indicated that he did. Protect yourself and those you love. So why did they kill Ashlea? She claimed that when Ashlea was murdered that she was in bed asleep and she didn't know where Clarence was. Each is charged with one count of capital murder. | Recent Lawyer Listings There are a lot of people at her apartment complex, which says a lot about the defendants in this case.'. But Carter never forgave Ashlea, with Leticia saying, She was the one that you wanted to like you because if you got on her bad side, there was no coming back from it. They founda plastic tub that contained bungee cords and arope. 27-year-old old Carter Carol Cervantez is on trial for capital murder in the killing of Ashlea Ann Harris, whose body was found on November 28, 2014. It had its lights off as it left the parking space in front of Ashleas apartment. Fort Worth police, who had been staking out Cervantez s residence, followed the pair to the mall and arrested Mallory in his car outside after 3 Cervantez went inside. He testified that the presence of. Ashlea was appointed to run the store while Cravey was out on medical leave. Fort Worth Police arrested two suspects in the November 28 murder of Ashlea Harris. Ashlea Ann Harris was murdered Nov. 28, 2014, by Clarence David Mallory, 22, and his co-defendant, Carter Carol Cervantes, 28. After missing several shifts, he was fired and barred from working at other American Eagle stores. I said, Can you tell me anything? He said, Ill ask you a question, does Jeremiah 29:11 mean anything to you? And I just fell down. Chris Cravey later found out that the key that was used to unlock the safe had been left unattended on a table in an area that Cervantez was folding clothes the day before. This case has not yet been cited in our system. However, things went awry after she hired a teen employee named Clarence David Mallory Jr., then 19, and started dating him, as per local reports. Cervantes also received a sentence of life without parole at a. They were scheduled to make a deposit that morning of the proceeds from the Black Friday sales. Harris boss told investigators the car was similar to a vehicle owned by former American Eagle Outfitters employee Carter Cervantes. Shes the one that coordinated everything and came up with the plan.As per official court records, she, 34, is serving her sentence at the Dr. Lane Murray Unit in Gatesville, Texas. A few minutes later, Patrick'scarbon monoxide detector went offand he sawwater dripping from the ceiling in his bathroom. Our district manager basically gave her the option to quit or to get transferred, said Groen. That was a term the brand used toindicate that the person should not be hired at any location. Police also saw what appeared to be a fresh injury to his lower lip and his lower lip was swollen. Many retailers have special markdowns and people lose their minds trying to snatch up the bargains. The Jury heard that Clarence was arrested in the car park at the mall . Both denied knowing anything about the homicide and claimed to be together on Thanksgiving, having dinner and watching movies. Next, he heard what sounded like heavy labored breathing. Ashlea Ann Harris was murdered Nov. 28, 2014, by Clarence David Mallory, 22, and his co-defendant, Carter Carol Cervantes, 28. The Ashlea Harris murder. | Advertising From what he could make out it was a female lying face down on the floor in front of the bed. The fire had been extinguished by then. On their cell phones, they had images of Ashlea's apartment, her apartment door and her vehicle. Detective Cedillo wanted to search Ashleas pick-up truck. Her feet and hands were bound with duct tape and she was covered in blood, according to Texas. One of her former co-workers, Leticia Groen, explained, They werent supposed to be dating because she controlled his pay, she controlled how much he worked, and she would just give him more preferential treatment. Who Killed Her. It didn't last long. January 17, 2022 According to news reports, Carter was an assistant store manager at the time, along with 31-year-oldAshlea Ann Harris. Im so sorry I forgot. Carter would always joke, If I were ever going to steal a deposit it would be after Black Friday or Tax Free Weekend.'. She would always find a way at work to make it harder on you.. Carter Carol Cervantez faces capital murder charges in connection with the death of Ashlea Harris. He was eventually labeled as non-rehirable in the American Eagle system. He observed. If you believe this Record is in error (i.e. Precedential, Citations: Cedillo went to the American Eagle store where Harris' boss was waiting for the owners to open up. When he went to touch her, he saw that her wrists and ankles were duct-taped. Chris went over to Detective Cedillo to tell him what he knew. They went directly to the safe where the night deposits were kept, unlocked it, and took the cash inside. By The following correctional supervision record (the "Record") was collected from the official state department of corrections website (see below for source link). And Ashlea discovered that Carter was the person due to lock up the night it was stolen and had left the back door open. Mallory and Cervantez reportedly also stole $18,000 from the same store in August of 2014. It didn't last long. She was inside getting some paperwork she needed to complete. Firefighters put out the blaze and found 31-year-old Harris dead on her bedroom floor. She workedas an assistant managerin an American Eagle store in the Hulen Mall. 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Ashlea went through the surveillance footage and alleged Carter and David to be the burglars, as Carter was seen leaving the back door of the store unlocked when she took the garbage out the night before. Cervantez was the assistant store manager who was to lock up the night of the theft. Patrick testified that he thought about what he should do. The Court heard that police believed that over the course of a few weeks, Carter and Clarence planned to kidnap Ashlea and steal the keys. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. He went searching for the reason it was going off and then noticed water dripping from the bathroom ceiling. Mallory is awaiting his trial on the same charges. The day after Harris' murder, Cervantez was caught by surveillance cameras trying to open the doors to the store, but they had already changed the locks. Surveillance cameras caught her wiping down the bottle after drinking from it in order to remove any traces of DNA. She testified at her own Trial and told the Court that she was afraid of Clarence. A Friday. In May 2016, 27-year-old Carter Carol Cervantes was found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole, according to The Dallas Morning News. It looked new as there was notany noticeable wear and the plastic price tag fastener was still attached. And when she did not do what she was told, they returned to their apartment, where Mallorys friends raped her repeatedly, Cervantez testified. The key opened the dressing room and storage closet at Hulen Mall American Eagle. He testified that when he entered the apartment, it, was full of smoke and water was spraying from the sprinkler system. She stole Ashleas keys to commit another theft with an even bigger payoff. She told the Court that she left Ashlea's apartment after 4am the morning of the 28th of November and that when she left, Ashlea locked the door. In May 2016, 27-year-old Carter Carol Cervantes was found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole, according to The Dallas Morning News. Carter Carol Cervantez, 27, testified that she was asleep at the time of the murder of Ashlea Harris and was forced into the robbery by her boyfriend, 21-year-old Clarence David Mallory, the Fort. Prosecutors for the case showed surveillance video of Cervantez buying shovels and other gear on November 21st, with the intention of digging a grave for Harris. In August 2016, Clarence David Mallory was found guilty of murder one after one hour of jury deliberation. The following opinions cover similar topics: CourtListener is a project of Free They were not able to open the gate and promptly left. On May 26, 2016, twenty-seven-year-old Carter Carol Cervantez was found guilty of capital murder. Fort Worth is located in north-central Texas. Lets find out. However, the police arrested David in the mall parking area after finding he carried no license, and officers went to their apartment and brought Carter in for questioning. The two. When he looked out the window he witnessed a dark-colored vehicle driving away. A key belonging to another assistant store manager was left in the night deposit box. Investigators believe the fire was an abrupt change in plan. Clarence and Carter wereboth charged with capital murder. Police have charged Carter Cervantez, 25, and her boyfriend Clarence "David" Mallory, 19, with capital murder in the death of Ashlea Harris, 31. Forth Worth was originally settled in 1849 as a US Army outpost to protect pioneers settling out west. Dr Richard Fries, a deputy medical examiner at the Tarrant County Medical. Mark Sedwick, a special agent with the FBI and a member of the Cellular Analysis Survey Team, testified as to the content of texts that had been sent at 11.52amon the 28th of November between Clarence's phoneandCarter's phone: Carter's phone-Hey, remember that thing you said I didnt clean well?Did you clean it? She told the Court she did not kill Ashlea and played no part in her death. Police retraced Ashlea's movements. They were caught within days after several witnesses identified their vehicle to be present at the crime scene and supplied the police with a strong motive for them to commit the homicide. They stalked Ashlea Harris like people stalk a deer.'. Hetestified that it looked like a human grave. The district manager decided to give Cervantez a fresh start. . The video showed what looked to be a male wearing a hoodie entering the back door. Police were contacted when the theft was discovered, but I dont know if they questioned Mallory or Cervantez. Police discovered that thirty one year old Ashlea Ann Harris lived in the apartment that was on fire. The apartment was filled with smoke. The scream was followed by a loud thud and he, could hear labored breathing. Ashlea Harris was outgoing and personable while the other assistant store manager, Carter was more straight-laced and reserved. Listen to the story of how Ashlea Harris fought for her life upsetting the plans of two nefarious killers who wanted a big pay off. One of the investigators alleged, It was evident to us that Carter was the mastermind behind this and I think David was the muscle. According to local news reports,the opening manager discovered $17,850.32 had been stolen from the safe. . The two disappeared after the theft and were not arrested until police tracked them down on Dec. 6. He was unable to find a pulse. 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State CourtListener.com, Defendant in American Eagle murder trial testifies, Belle Gunness The Mistress of the Murder Farm, Kendall Francois The Poughkeepsie Killer, Dateline Podcast Black Friday November 29, 2019. He was also found found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole, according to the Dallas Voice newspaper. Christopher Chris Cravey, Ashlea's boss, heard that police were asking about that vehicle and he told them he knew someone who drove one. Ashlea Ann Harris loved working in retail where she could meet new people every day. Detective Cedillo drove there and he found a hole that had been dug that measuredsix feet long, two and a half feet wide, and three feet deep.