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Texas Killer Who Claimed ‘Sacrifices’ Dismembered Three at Motel and Was Sentenced to Death in 2024

He was sentenced to death in 2024 after a jury rejected an insanity plea.

Overview

  • Jason Alan Thornburg, 45, murdered and dismembered three people during a seven-day spree at the Mid City Inn in Euless, a suburb of Fort Worth.
  • He lured David Lueras, 42, Lauren Phillips, 34, and Maricruz Mathis, 33, to his motel room and later admitted calling the killings ‘human sacrifices’ to God.
  • Police arrested him after finding dismembered remains in a burning dumpster near the motel and reviewing CCTV that showed him dumping the bodies and driving away in a Jeep Grand Cherokee.
  • He confessed to cannibalizing body parts, including a piece of a victim’s heart, and to mutilating another victim, which prosecutors used to underscore deliberate, ritual violence.
  • Thornburg also admitted killing former housemate Mark Jewell in 2021 and claimed he ‘sacrificed’ ex-girlfriend Tanya Begay in 2017, though her remains have not been found.