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Texas man's confession to killing pregnant sister is caught on doorbell camera, police say

Jennifer Chioma Ebichi, 32, died Friday after she was stabbed multiple times near Austin. She was pregnant with her third child.
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A Texas man charged with stabbing his pregnant sister to death was caught confessing to the killing on doorbell camera video, police said.

Michael Ify Egwuagu, 25, was taken into custody on Friday, the same day that Jennifer Chioma Ebichi, 32, was found suffering from multiple stab wounds at a home in Pflugerville, about 17 miles north of Austin.

Ebichi, who was in the first trimester of pregnancy, died at the scene, the Travis County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

An arrest affidavit alleges that Egwuagu was seen on doorbell camera video holding a knife as he left the home after the killing. It says the video recorded him telling a church member who had come to check on Ebichi: "I killed Jennifer."

Image: Jennifer Ebichi
Jennifer Ebichi was stabbed to death in her home in Pflugerville, Texas.GoFundMe

Chief Medical Examiner J. Keith Pinckard said he believed Ebichi was stabbed one to two dozen times and died as a result of multiple stab wounds.

Authorities were called to the home just before 5 p.m. for a report that a woman had been stabbed. When deputies arrived, they found Ebichi on the kitchen floor suffering from "obvious injuries to her abdomen and face," the affidavit states.

Egwuagu was found in the street outside the home naked with blood on him and an 8- to 10-inch bloody knife on the ground next to him. He was taken into custody on a murder charge.

Ebichi's twin brother, Martin Egwuagu, told deputies that their sister texted him around 5:30 a.m. stating that Michael Egwuagu was at the home and "was having a crisis," according to the affidavit. Martin Egwuagu said that he talked to his brother to calm him down and that Michael Egwuagu "made several strange statements," it says.

Image: Michael Egwuagu
Michael Egwuagu was charged with murder in the death of his sister in Pflugerville, Texas, on Dec. 27, 2019.Travis County Sheriff's Office via AP

Martin Egwuagu said his sister texted him again at around 4:10 p.m., this time asking him to come to the house. When he arrived, a church member was standing outside with Ebichi's oldest child, who was covered in blood, according to the affidavit, which says Martin Egwuagu told deputies that he found Ebichi's body inside the home and heard her younger child crying.

Martin Egwuagu said his brother was in the street and appeared to be praying. Michael Egwuagu, who had blood on his clothes, kept making statements that Martin Egwuagu was "one of the good ones," according to the affidavit. The document then states that Michael Egwuagu stripped naked and dumped his bloody clothes in a neighbor's garbage can.

The church member, Linda Mura, told deputies that Ebichi had also asked her to come to the house and that when she got there, she heard yelling inside. A short time later, Michael Egwuagu left smiling, holding a knife and saying he had killed his sister, the affidavit says.

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Ebichi was a married mother of two daughters, according to a GoFundMe campaign set up for funeral costs. She worked as a nurse at Ascension Seton Medical Center Austin.

The medical center said in a statement that it was "deeply saddened" by her death and was sending thoughts and prayers to her family.

Michael Egwuagu was being held at the Travis County Correctional Complex on a $500,000 bond.

"We do not have any comment at this time except to say that this is a very painful and difficult time for the family," Krista Chacona, an attorney for Egwuagu and the family, said in a statement. "We would ask that people please respect their privacy and allow them time to grieve."