Serial Killer Who Slit Three Victims' Throats Before Setting Them On Fire Confesses To Also Killing Ex-Girlfriend

A serial killer, who reportedly brutally slit the throats of three of his victims before setting them on fire inside a Fort Worth dumpster, has also confessed to killing his roommate and ex-girlfriend.

Jason Thornburg, 41, has been indicted on Monday, Dec. 13, on a charge of capital murder after the bodies of the three victims David Lueras, Lauren Phillips, and Maricruz Mathis were found on Sept. 22 inside a burning dumpster in west Fort Worth on Bonnie Drive, 12 News reported.

On Sept. 22 at around 6:15 a.m., Fort Worth firefighters were called to a dumpster fire on the city's west side in the 3100 block of Bonnie Drive and were confronted with the charred and dismembered remains of three people.

When investigators checked CCTV surveillance cameras near the dumpster as part of the investigation, they observed a man in a dark SUV similar to a black Jeep Cherokee pulling up next to the trash bin. From a list of more than 7,000 similar vehicles in Tarrant and Dallas counties, investigators identified the SUV as a 2008 Grand Cherokee that was owned by Thornburg and took him into custody, WFAA reported.

In addition to confessing to the killing of the three victims, he also admitted to earlier murdering his roommate and girlfriend named Tanya Begay, 36, from Arizona. Begay was reportedly in a relationship with Thornburg until she disappeared in 2017.

Begay’s family said that their relationship was abusive and often involved hard drug use. Even though Begay's body was never found, people reported seeing Thornburg burning objects near his home in Dilkon right after Begay went missing, Latin Times reported.

After he was arrested in Texas, Thornburg allegedly confessed to killing Begay and told the investigators that he had detailed knowledge of the Bible and believed that he was being called to perform sacrifices.

In addition to the murder of the three people found in the dumpster, he also confessed to slitting his roommate’s throat in May before causing a gas explosion that burned down their house.

Meanwhile, a Tarrant County magistrate judge ordered a mental health evaluation for Thornburg in October stating there was "reasonable cause to believe that he has a mental illness or is a person with an intellectual disability."