Ashlea Ann Harris, 31, was killed on November 28, 2014, in her apartment in Fort Worth, Texas. Harris worked as an assistant manager at an American Eagle Outfitters store at Hulen Mall. On the morning of her death, firefighters responded to an emergency call at the River Ranch Apartments, where Harris lived, to extinguish a fire. Upon entering her apartment, they found Harris dead with her hands and feet bound with duct tape. The autopsy revealed that she died from blunt force trauma to her head and face, along with strangulation marks around her neck, indicating she had not died from the fire itself but was likely killed prior to the blaze being set to cover up evidence. Blood was found throughout the room, and rubbing alcohol was identified as an accelerant used to start the fire.
The investigation into Harris' death pointed towards two of her former co-workers at American Eagle, Carter Carol Cervantez and Clarence David Mallory. Both had been fired from their jobs following a theft of $18,000 from the store during Texas' Sales Tax Holiday Weekend in August 2014. Harris had played a significant role in identifying Cervantez and Mallory as suspects in the theft, which ultimately led to their dismissal. This incident seemingly created a motive for revenge, leading Cervantez and Mallory to target Harris. The couple had planned to use Harris' keys to break into the store after Black Friday sales, which represented one of the highest cash accumulation periods of the year. However, by the time of their attempt, the store had changed its locks, foiling their robbery plans.
On the night of her death, Harris had worked a late shift due to the Black Friday sales, arriving home around 3:15 a.m. The couple allegedly followed her, and a neighbor later reported hearing noises such as a "thump" and screaming, along with heavy breathing. After killing Harris, Cervantez and Mallory set fire to her apartment and fled. The fire was ultimately controlled, and police discovered Harris' body soon after. Police surveillance and an analysis of phone records, alongside evidence collected during a search of Cervantez and Mallory's residence, pointed towards their involvement. Items like shovels, gloves, rope, and duct tape, referred to by investigators as a "murder kit," were found in their apartment, as well as other incriminating items.
In December 2014, arrest warrants were issued for both Cervantez and Mallory. They were eventually charged with capital murder and found guilty. Both received life sentences without the possibility of parole, with Carter Cervantez incarcerated at the Dr. Lane Murray Unit in Gatesville and David Mallory at the Ferguson Unit in Midway, Texas. Their conviction marked the end of a case that had started with a betrayal in a workplace setting and escalated to a violent and tragic act of revenge.
