Cannibal serial killer Jason Thornburg sentenced to death
TARRANT COUNTY – A North Texas serial killer convicted of murdering and dismembering a man and two women in what he has called "human sacrifices" has been sentenced to death.
Jason Thornburg, 44, was sentenced by a jury to death, as sought by the prosecution.
On Nov. 20, Thornburg was convicted of capital murder.
In December 2021, Thornburg was indicted for the murders of David Lueras, Lauren Phillips and Maricruz Mathis. The three victims' bodies were found burning in a Fort Worth dumpster in September 2021.
Police said Thornburg also confessed to the murders of two other people years before – his girlfriend, Tanya Begay, in Arizona in 2017 and his former roommate, Mark Jewell, in May 2021.
Thornburg said it was all a "human sacrifice to God."
According to an affidavit, Thornburg said he has an in-depth knowledge of the Bible and believes he was called to commit human sacrifices. He even attended a leadership conference taught by one of his alleged victims. On a worksheet, he wrote that he wanted to be a missionary and said his greatest strength was "a sense of purpose, a sense of destiny that must be achieved."
In 2021, a Tarrant County judge ruled that there is reasonable cause to believe Thornburg has a mental illness or intellectual disability.
