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Jonathan Welch: Michigan man, 23, sets ex-GF's genitals ablaze before killing her and his parents

After managing to arrest Welch, cops discovered Frazier's one-year-old son in the backyard who was taken to the local hospital for treatment
UPDATED AUG 30, 2022
Jonathan Welch was accused of violently torturing his girlfriend (Wayne County Sheriff’s Office and GoFundMe)
Jonathan Welch was accused of violently torturing his girlfriend (Wayne County Sheriff’s Office and GoFundMe)

Warning: Graphic content, readers’ discretion advised

HIGHLAND PARK, MICHIGAN: A Michigan man accused of violently torturing his girlfriend was released on bond and within days allegedly murdered her and his stepfather, stabbed his mother with a butcher’s knife, and dropped his baby out of a window, Crimeonline reports. Police say the string of violence began on June 2, when 23-year-old Jonathan Welch allegedly attacked his girlfriend, Zlayiah Frazier, 22, with whom he shared his house. Welch reportedly strangled the woman with an extension cord, doused her with gasoline, burned her using a scalding spatula, and sexually assaulted her with a pole. 

He had been initially charged with three counts of first-degree murder, three counts of assault with intent to murder, one count of second-degree arson, seven counts of felonious assault, and six counts of felony firearm. Welch appeared in court for a preliminary hearing on the original charges. According to a written statement from Frazier, he woke up the victim at 3 am and began to sexually assault her while demanding the password to her phone as he was upset about Frazier possibly talking to someone else and he wanted to see her conversations. When she refused, he began to torture her while their child lay in the other room, a detective said in court on Monday, August 22, during a preliminary hearing. 

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Frazier told police that she periodically was allowed to leave the room to help soothe their upset baby. The four-hour attack came to an end when Frazier finally was able to escape and run to a neighbor's house where they protected her and covered her with a blanket. The neighbors called 911 and managed to defend the victim despite Welch fighting back and kicking down their front door, WXYZ reported. Later that day, he was arrested and jailed but sadly, this was just the beginning of his violent and cruel behavior.



 

Prosecutors then say 36th District Court Magistrate Dawn White set Welch's bond at $100,000 / 10 percent cash surety. Less than a month later, Welch was able to post that 10% - $10,000 - and was out of jail on Friday, July 8. By the following Sunday Frazier was dead. "They let him out of jail, he killed my sister, he killed my sister," said her sister Breonna to Fox2. Cops responded to Welch's mother's home to discover a blood bath on the same day. The Michigan man, who was ordered to stay in his 42-year-old mother's home, stabbed his mom multiple times in the back with a butcher night, cops said. Welch's mother Flossie Nicole Bray sadly succumbed to her wounds in the hospital days later. He also killed his stepfather Robert Bray, 70, with blunt force trauma, according to police.

Officials responded to the scene and were greeted with gunfire from Welch who barricaded himself in the home and set it on fire. After managing to arrest him, cops discovered Frazier's one-year-old son in the backyard. The child was taken to the local hospital for treatment. Welch now faces 19 counts including first-degree murder, according to local reports. He is not being held on bond. He faces the possibility of life in prison, and is set to appear in court.

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