Arizona woman gets boyfriend to kill her own mother to prevent her from gaining custody of their unborn child
KINGMAN, ARIZONA: A woman who confessed to murdering her own mother claims she did it to prevent her mother from taking custody of her unborn second child. The 24-year-old, Carrie Vanover, had admitted that she had killed her 64-year-old mother Shawn Vanover in April 2019 at a court hearing on Wednesday, July 11, after Shawn had vowed to take Carrie's unborn boy away from her after he was born.
Carrie's daughter had been taken from her by social services after she was labeled an unfit mother. The daughter was given to Shawn who used to work as a nurse. Carrie grew enraged at the possibility of her mother Shawn also gaining custody of her second child, according to a Metro report. An affidavit revealed that "they did not want Shawn to get custody of their newborn," according to Mohave Daily News. Carrie along with her 32-year-old boyfriend Mark Baldonado went to Shawn's home in Arizona to kill her. The pair had initially planned to drug Carrie and then kill her. Baldonado, however, ended up attacking the woman with a hammer.
Baldonado stood in the bathroom with a hammer while Shawn entered the bedroom. "In the bedroom, she heard Shawn screaming. Mark came into the room stating Shawn was still breathing. He grabbed a black gun from the nightstand and headed back to the kitchen. Carrie said she heard two gunshots," the affidavit stated.
According to prosecutor Cameron Patt, the hammer attack failed which is when Baldonado reached for a gun, the court hearing was told. Baldonado then placed a pillow over Shawn's face and opened fire on her, killing her. Baldonado, meanwhile, claims he had a blackout and does not remember striking the victim though he does remember standing over her with a hammer. The affidavit also revealed that Carrie had cleaned up all the blood from the crime scene.
Carrie and Baldonado then tried to conceal Shawn's body in a 55-gallon oil barrel that had been welded shut and buried in the backyard. Baldonado had used a cherry picker to lower the drum into a hole that he had dug. He had also constructed a fireplace over the top of the burial site. It was an unidentified tip led to the Mohave County Sheriff's Office discovered the body.
Carrie had her second child, a baby boy, a month after she murdered her mother. The couple had also taken back Carrie's daughter from Shawn's house and had managed to conceal her until the two were arrested with regard to Shawn's death. According to a report by Mohave Valley Daily News, both children are currently in state care. From Shawn's Facebook page, it was evident that Carrie's daughter had been well looked after by her grandmother who had even thrown her a lavish birthday party on her fifth birthday.
Carrie who had admitted to first-degree murder is facing a life sentence with a minimum of 25 years behind bars. Her sentencing has been scheduled for July 10 while her boyfriend Maldonado also admitted to the same charges. He was jailed for life with a minimum of 25 years during his sentencing which took place on June 6.