Former NFL Player Receives 30-Year Prison Sentence For Murdering Girlfriend, Burning Her Body
Former NFL player Kevin Ware Jr. has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to the 2021 murder of his girlfriend, whose corpse he torched following her death.
Ware, 41, a former tight end who briefly played in the NFL during the early '00s, reached a plea deal on Wednesday (May 7) for the slaying of Taylor Pomaski, bringing closure to a case that shocked the Houston community.
Pomaski, who was dating Ware at the time, was last seen alive at a house party at her home in Houston on April 25, 2021, according to a news report following her disappearance.
After months of searching, the 29-year-old's remains were discovered in December 2021, discarded in a ditch in Harris County. Court documents revealed the gruesome details of her murder: Ware had 'cut her with a knife, hit her with a blunt object, strangled her and then burned her corpse.'
In the weeks leading up to her death, those close to Pomaski said she was trying to leave what they believed was an abusive relationship.
Her former boyfriend, Eric Zuleger, told KHOU 11 News, 'Taylor reached out to me many times throughout the month of April. We were talking about her getting out of there, getting back on her feet, getting herself set and stabilized.'
Just days before her disappearance, Ware was arrested during a traffic stop and found in possession of multiple firearms, including an assault rifle. He later pleaded guilty to unrelated drug and weapons charges in December 2022, receiving a 15-year sentence.
Ware's brief NFL career began after a standout run at the University of Washington. Though he went undrafted in the 2003 NFL Draft, he was picked up by the Redskins before being waived in 2004. He later played five games for the 49ers and was signed, though never fielded, by the Oakland Raiders.
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