May 18, 2022
-Toronto Sun
A Texas district attorney wants to see accused dismemberment killer Jason Thornburg dead.
Thornburg, 41, allegedly murdered and dismembered three people at a suburban Fort Worth motel then burned their remains in a dumpster last September.
According to cops, Thornburg confessed to murdering David Lueras, Lauren Phillips, and Maricruz Mathis over a grisly three-day period in Room 113 at the Mid City Inn. He then allegedly went about the macabre task of dismemberment.
Thornburg is then accused of ditching the body parts in a dumpster on Sept. 22 and then setting the bins ablaze. He told detectives that he strangled Phillips and cut Lueras’ and Mathis’ throats.
Now, the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office is seeking the ultimate punishment if Thornburg is convicted: A lethal in the arm at the notorious Huntsville death house.
According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Thornburg allegedly told cops that he has an “in-depth knowledge of the Bible” and he killed because he was being called upon to commit human sacrifices.
The suspected killer allegedly kept the remains in trash bags for several days before purchasing Rubbermaid-type bins to contain the remains. Lueras was a friend and Thornburg allegedly told cops he knew the two dead women “casually”.
They too had to be sacrificed, he told police.
Surveillance footage of a vehicle at the site of the dumpster led authorities to Thornburg.
Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney Sharen Wilson said in a news release that seeking the death penalty was not a decision her office took lightly.
“The death penalty is reserved for the worst of the worst criminals,” she said. “It is only fitting that we seek the death penalty in this case.”
In addition, Thornburg faces additional, unrelated charges of murder and arson regarding the death of his roommate, Mark Jewell, on May 21, 2021.
“He actually spoke at the guy’s funeral service,” Scott Black said at the time. “That is what’s giving me chills. I’m stunned. My whole view of humanity has changed. This is evil. Pure evil.”
He has also confessed to killing his girlfriend in Arizona, though her body has not been found, according to the warrant.
