A Missouri woman has been sentenced to two consecutive life terms in prison without the eligibility of parole for the 2022 murder of an Arkansas pregnant woman and her preborn child.
In July, Amber Waterman, 44, of Pineville, Missouri, pled guilty to kidnapping resulting in the death of 33-year-old Ashley Bush of Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Waterman was also convicted of causing the death of a child in utero. Bush was 31 weeks pregnant at the time of her death, with a little girl named Valkyrie Willis.
Waterman targeted Bush because she was pregnant, luring her to meet with the promise of baby clothes and a job before kidnapping her and cutting the baby from her womb. Waterman stole the baby with the hope of passing the child off as her own, but little Valkyrie tragically died. Waterman called 911 because the child wasn’t breathing, telling authorities she had given birth in a truck while on the way to the hospital. Authorities were suspicious and started an investigation.
Murder victim Ashley Bush (Screenshot: 5News)
An autopsy later revealed that the child did not belong to Waterman and her husband, Jamie. Police also tracked Bush’s location to Waterman’s house, where they found Bush’s burned and dismembered body. Her autopsy confirmed she had been killed through “penetrating trauma” to the torso – dying when Waterman ripped her baby out of her body.
“This horrific crime resulted in the tragic deaths of two innocent victims,” U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore said when Waterman was convicted. “Today’s guilty plea holds this defendant accountable for her actions and ensures that justice will be served. She is now subject to a mandatory sentence of life in federal prison without parole.”
Amber Waterman’s husband, Jamie Waterman, was also found guilty of one count of being an accessory after the fact to the kidnapping resulting in death. He faces a sentence of up to 15 years in federal prison without parole.
