Latest news with #Banta
Perth Now
12-06-2025
- Perth Now
Murder charge after man spikes GF's drink with abortion drug
A man has been charged with capital murder after allegedly lacing his girlfriend's drink with an abortion drug at a coffee shop, because she refused to terminate her pregnancy. Detectives in the US state of Texas began an investigation into allegations made against Justin Anthony Banta after his girlfriend made a complaint to police following a miscarriage. Mr Banta was arrested and charged with murdering the unborn child after investigators felt they had gathered enough evidence to prove he poured the abortion drug, Plan C, into his former partner's a cup of coffee while meeting at a local store. The woman, whose name has not been released, was unaware of his actions, but later became suspicious after she experienced heavy bleeding soon after the meeting and had to rush to an urgent care facility. Days after her hospital visit the woman lost the baby, which doctors had described as being in perfect health, to a miscarriage. Prior to the incident, Mr Banta reportedly offered to provide money for the woman to have an abortion, which she refused, saying she wished to have the baby. A police statement said Mr Banta's former girlfriend was around six weeks pregnant. During a checkup with her doctor, she was told the baby had 'a strong heartbeat' and vital signs, according to the statement. 'Later that same day, the victim reported she met Banta at a coffee shop ... where she expressed her suspicion that Banta had secretly added abortion-inducing pills to her drink without her knowledge or permission,' the Parker County Sheriff's Office said. The woman also reportedly told police Mr Banta proposed they purchase some Plan C abortion drug online as he tried in vain to convince here to terminate the pregnancy. Mr Banta who was working in IT for the US Department of Justice at the time, is alleged to have accessed his phone remotely and performed a 'reset' following the events. He has been subsequently been charged with tampering with physical evidence. The state of Texas introduced a law in 2022 that carries civil and criminal penalties for those who perform abortions and has some of the strictest laws in the US around abortion. A law in 2021 also bans the termination of pregnancies after a baby's heartbeat is detected, but does make exceptions for medical emergencies.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Texas man allegedly spiked girlfriend's drink with Plan C to terminate her pregnancy, officials say
A Texas man was arrested and accused of spiking a romantic partner's drink with abortion-inducing medication and allegedly ending her pregnancy without consent, officials said Wednesday. Justin Anthony Banta, 38, was booked into custody on Friday last week on suspicion of tampering with evidence and capital murder before he posted at $500,000 bond and was released, Parker County authorities said. A woman claimed she had been seeing Banta and told him in September last year that was pregnant with his child, according to a sheriff's department statement. The woman met Banta at a coffee shop in nearby Tarrant County where she believes the suspect "secretly added abortion-inducing pills to her drink without her knowledge or permission," the sheriff said. "The victim reported she lost her baby on Oct. 19, which she believed was a result of the drugs Banta had previously placed in her drink at the coffee shop without her permission," the sheriff added. Banta, who works in information technology for the U.S. Department of Justice, also "reset" his cell phone during the probe, "thereby deleting crucial evidence related to the case," according to the sheriff. Banta, who is separated from his wife, said he'd seen this woman four times. He and defense attorney Michael Heiskell denied the defendant spiked any drinks. "He's innocent of these charges," Heiskell told NBC News. "He has cooperated with the investigators since last fall when all of this brouhaha arose after his relationship ended with this woman. He is not guilty." At this point in the probe, law enforcement has not shown Banta any evidence to confirm the woman's pregnancy, according to Heiskell. "There were discussions about her being pregnant, but that was never confirmed by her to him. And yes, he did research Plan C," said Heiskell, who denied his client put that medication in the accuser's drink. Texas law bans nearly all abortions, so abortion-inducing pills cannot be obtained from doctors or pharmacists in the state. However, people are often still able to obtain the medication through any number of online providers. This article was originally published on
USA Today
11-06-2025
- USA Today
DOJ worker accused of drugging girlfriend to abort her child, officials say
Hear this story An information technology employee for the U.S. Department of Justice has been charged in connection to a capital murder case in Texas after authorities said he slipped abortion drugs into a woman's drink, causing her to miscarry. Justin Banta, 38, was booked into the Parker County Jail on June 6 in connection to the death of a child he was expecting with his then-girlfriend in October 2024. According to authorities, Banta allegedly put an abortion drug in the woman's drink without her knowledge, leading to the loss of their baby. Banta was released on bond that same day, June 6, per online court records. Banta is facing a charge of tampering with physical evidence out of Parker County, as well as a charge out of Tarrant County for capital murder, authorities said in a press release. The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's requests for comment on June 11. As of Wednesday afternoon, June 11, information about Banta's legal representation was not immediately clear. Here's what we know so far about the case against Banta. What is the victim saying? The victim was expecting a child with Banta, her then-boyfriend, in September 2024, the Parker County Sheriff's Office said in the press release. When she told Banta she was pregnant, he offered to cover the cost of terminating the pregnancy, the victim told authorities. She told Banta she wanted to keep the baby, authorities said. On Oct. 17, 2024, when she was six weeks pregnant, she went to a doctor's appointment and found out her child had a strong heartbeat and good vital signs. That same day, she met Banta at a coffee shop in Tarrant County, 37 miles west of Dallas. The victim told investigators she thinks Banta put 'Plan C,' commonly known as an abortion drug, into her drink. The next day, she was extremely fatigued and suffered heavy bleeding, so she went to the emergency room. By Oct. 19, she'd lost her baby, 'which she believed was a result of the drugs Banta had previously placed in her drink at the coffee shop without her permission,' the Parker County Sheriff's Office said. Authorities: Suspect and IT worker remotely wiped his phone Authorities interviewed Banta and collected his cell phone as evidence, Parker County authorities said. 'Sheriff's investigators believe Banta, who works at the IT Department of the U.S. Department of Justice, later accessed the phone remotely and performed a 'reset,' thereby deleting crucial evidence related to the case,' the Parker County Sheriff's Office said. The office's Criminal Investigations Division arrested Banta on June 6 in connection to the death of the woman's baby. Authorities referred to the baby's death as a 'capital murder investigation.' According to Parker County Sheriff Russ Authier, Banta's cases are awaiting prosecution. Authier said multiple agencies worked the cases, including the Texas Rangers, Benbrook Police, Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney's Digital Forensic and Technical Services, the U.S. Secret Service, the Regional Organized Crime Information Center, and the Federal Bureau of Investigations. Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@
NBC News
11-06-2025
- NBC News
Texas man allegedly spiked girlfriend's drink with Plan C to terminate her pregnancy, officials say
A Texas man was arrested and accused of spiking a romantic partner's drink with abortion-inducing medication and allegedly ending her pregnancy without consent, officials said Wednesday. Justin Anthony Banta, 38, was booked into custody on Friday last week on suspicion of tampering with evidence and capital murder before he posted at $500,000 bond and was released, Parker County authorities said. A woman claimed she had been seeing Banta and told him in September last year that was pregnant with his child, according to a sheriff's department statement. The woman met Banta at a coffee shop in nearby Tarrant County where she believes the suspect "secretly added abortion-inducing pills to her drink without her knowledge or permission," the sheriff said. "The victim reported she lost her baby on Oct. 19, which she believed was a result of the drugs Banta had previously placed in her drink at the coffee shop without her permission," the sheriff added. Banta, who works in information technology for the U.S. Department of Justice, also "reset" his cell phone during the probe, "thereby deleting crucial evidence related to the case," according to the sheriff. Banta, who is separated from his wife, said he'd seen this woman four times. He and defense attorney Michael Heiskell denied the defendant spiked any drinks. "He's innocent of these charges," Heiskell told NBC News. "He has cooperated with the investigators since last fall when all of this brouhaha arose after his relationship ended with this woman. He is not guilty." At this point in the probe, law enforcement has not shown Banta any evidence to confirm the woman's pregnancy, according to Heiskell. "There were discussions about her being pregnant, but that was never confirmed by her to him. And yes, he did research Plan C," said Heiskell, who denied his client put that medication in the accuser's drink. Texas law bans nearly all abortions, so abortion-inducing pills cannot be obtained from doctors or pharmacists in the state.
American Military News
11-06-2025
- American Military News
Pic: DOJ worker allegedly spiked pregnant girlfriend's drink with abortion pill
An employee of the U.S. Department of Justice was recently charged with capital murder after allegedly spiking his pregnant girlfriend's drink with an abortion pill. In a press release on Facebook, the Parker County Sheriff's Office announced that the office's Criminal Investigations Division arrested 38-year-old Justin Anthony Banta, an employee of the Department of Justice's information technology department, on Friday as part of a 'capital murder investigation involving a pregnant woman.' 'The victim reported that her boyfriend intentionally added 'Plan C,' (commonly known as the abortion drug) to her drink in order to force her to have an abortion without her knowledge or consent,' the press release stated. According to the Parker County Sheriff's Office, the female victim reported in September of 2024 that she was in a 'romantic relationship' with Banta when she found out she was pregnant. After the victim told Banta that she was pregnant, the 38-year-old suspect offered to cover the cost of an abortion and proposed ordering the abortion drug online; however, the victim told Banta that she wanted to keep the baby. The press release explained that the victim had a sonogram on October 17 when she was roughly six weeks pregnant and was told by a doctor that her baby was healthy. READ MORE: Democrats block bill protecting babies born alive during failed abortions 'Later that same day, the victim reported she met Banta at a coffee shop in Tarrant County, where she expressed her suspicion that Banta had secretly added abortion-inducing pills to her drink without her knowledge or permission, while they were at a coffee shop,' the Parker County Sheriff's Office said. According to law enforcement officials, the victim started experiencing 'heavy bleeding' and 'extreme fatigue' just one day after meeting Banta at the coffee shop, forcing her to go to an emergency room. The victim told law enforcement officials that she lost her baby on October 17 and claimed that the loss of her baby was caused by abortion drugs Banta allegedly placed in her drink. The Parker County Sheriff's Office believes that Banta remotely accessed his cell phone, which was seized by law enforcement officials as evidence, and 'reset' the phone to delete 'crucial evidence related to the case.' According to the press release, law enforcement officials obtained a felony arrest warrant for the 38-year-old suspect and booked him into the Parker County Jail on Friday. Banta has been charged by the Texas Rangers for capital murder and by the Parker County Sheriff's Office for tampering with physical evidence. A picture of Banta has been shared on X, formerly Twitter. 🔎 Federal IT Employee Accused of Capital Murder After Allegedly Drugging Pregnant Girlfriend's Drink 💔 Parker County, TX – A months-long investigation has led to the arrest of 38-year-old Justin Anthony Banta, who is now facing capital murder charges after allegedly slipping… — Texan Report (@TexanReport) June 9, 2025
