A former aide to the British royal family was murdered in Texas Monday and her husband was arrested — after years of what her family called a “rocky” and “toxic” relationship.
Jenean Chapman was found dead in her downtown Dallas apartment around 1:15 p.m. after police were called for a wellness check, the department said.
“I am shocked and saddened to learn that Jenean Chapman, who worked with me as my personal assistant many years ago, has been murdered in Dallas aged just 46,” Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York and former wife of disgraced Prince Andrew, wrote on Instagram.
“Jenean was loyal, hardworking, beautiful and fun and my heart breaks for her family and friends. I heard from her just a couple of months ago and she seemed so happy.”
Police are tight-lipped about the details of Chapman’s murder.
Her death was initially ruled as “unexplained” until it was reclassified as a homicide the following day.
James Patrick, 48, was identified as a suspect the same day — but he was already 200 miles away in Austin.
He was taken into custody by the University of Texas Police and shipped back to Dallas.
Loved ones identified Patrick as Chapman’s husband, adding that their relationship had been abusive leading up to the killing.
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“The past couple of days have been absolutely the worse (sic) days of my life. My sister was recently a victim of physical abuse and her life was brutally taken away from her. She had so much to look forward to and impacted so many people in her life,” her sister Crystal Marshall said in a post peppered with domestic violence hashtags.
“Even though her presence is no longer with us her light will continue to shine in our hearts and fond memories we have of her. I love and miss you dearly sis and wish you weren’t taken away from us so soon.”
Chapman’s family barely knew Patrick, but recognized that the couple’s relationship was harmful.
The pair had known one another for six years but had only been married for two months — three months after they moved to Dallas so Chapman could embark on a new job.
“The most we can just say is that the relationship was toxic,” sister Nicole Chapman told BNC Dallas Fort Worth.
“We were shocked because before that it was an on-and-off relationship. It was rocky, we were aware of that. She broke the news to our mother (about the marriage) and of course our mother told us and yeah, we definitely didn’t see that coming. And no, there was no wedding, so we weren’t involved, unfortunately.”
Investigators told the family that Chapman’s body may have been in the apartment for several days.
Patrick has been charged with murder and is being held on a $100,000 bond and has an “out of county felony” charge.
