Jury convicts Missouri man Beau Rothwell in murder of pregnant wife

A jury has convicted a Missouri man of murdering his pregnant spouse after dishonest on her and writing an inventory of causes to depart her.

Together with a first-degree homicide cost, Beau Rothwell was discovered responsible on Thursday of tampering with bodily proof and abandonment of a corpse, based on the St. Louis Put up-Dispatch.

Throughout his trial, Rothwell, 31, confessed to killing his spouse, Jennifer Rothwell, whereas denying the killing was premeditated and in search of a conviction on a lesser manslaughter rely. The Creve Coeur resident testified that he clubbed his 28-year-old spouse of 4 years to dying with a mallet at their dwelling in November, 2019, throughout a heated argument over his affair with one other girl.

Her badly overwhelmed physique was discovered a few week after she was reported lacking.

Beau Rothwell testified that on Nov. 11, 2019, he whacked his spouse, who was six weeks pregnant, within the head from behind with a mallet, adopted her as she stumbled towards the storage door and hit her once more.

Beau Rothwell is ready to be sentenced July 8, when he faces life in jail with out the potential for parole.

Prosecutors portrayed Beau Rothwell as a cautious planner, exhibiting the jury his texts with the opposite girl, in addition to an inventory of professionals and cons he drafted for leaving his spouse. He had reported his spouse lacking on Nov. 12, 2019.

Police beforehand mentioned Rothwell was caught on video shopping for cleansing merchandise — together with bleach and gloves — at some point earlier than she vanished.

Police later discovered bottles of bleach within the dwelling and a moist, blood-stained carpet.

Investigators decided the blood was his spouse’s.

Jennifer Rothwell searched “what to do in case your husband is upset you’re pregnant” on her cellphone earlier than she went lacking, police mentioned. 

Her physique was discovered about 45 miles northwest of her dwelling.

Rothwell was arrested simply hours after posting a plea for assistance on social media.

“A few of you will have heard already, however final evening my spouse Jennifer went lacking,” he wrote on Fb. “I’ve filed a police report and the search is ongoing. Please, in the event you hear of something or have any data it will be tremendously appreciated.”

He was initially arrested in 2019 on proof tampering costs, however costs had been upgraded to homicide after investigators used DNA samples from Jennifer’s mother and father to substantiate blood discovered inside the house was hers.