The man accused of murdering Sarah Ferguson’s long-term personal assistant has been pictured after he was arrested on suspicion of murder 200 miles from where her body was found in Texas.
Jenean Chapman, who had been married for just two months to James Patrick, 48, was found dead by police in her Dallas, Texas apartment last Monday, five months after moving to the city.
Patrick, was arrested 200 miles away in Austin, Texas last Wednesday, Sept. 27, and is now being held at the North Tower Detention Facility after being booked at 4:06 p.m. yesterday, Dallas County authorities revealed.
Records say his bond amount was exactly one million dollars.
The Duchess of York last week said she was ‘shocked and saddened’ to learn of the death of Ms Chapman, who she previously worked with as a member of the royal family.
The 63-year-old said her former assistant, 46, was a ‘loyal, hardworking, beautiful and fun’ woman and pledged to help her family pay for her funeral.
James Patrick (pictured), 48, is accused of murdering his wife Jenean Chapman, who was Sarah Ferguson’s long-term personal assistant
Sarah Ferguson last week paid tribute to her former personal assistant Jenean Chapman after she was murdered in Texas. Pictured: The Duchess of York (left) in a car with Mrs Chapman (right)
Jenean Chapman (pictured), who had been married for just two months to Patrick, 48, was found dead by police in her Dallas, Texas apartment last Monday.
Police initially described Ms Chapman’s death as unexplained until a post-mortem the next day ruled her death a homicide.
Her loved ones claim Patrick, who knew Ms Chapman for six years, was physically abusive towards his wife and described their relationship as ‘toxic’.
Writing on Instagram, sister Crystal Marshall said the time since learning of Ms Chapman’s death had been ‘the worst days of my life’.
She added: “My sister was recently a victim of physical abuse and her life was brutally taken.
“She had so much to look forward to and impacted so many people in her life. Her achievements are too many to count.
“Although her presence is no longer with us, her light will continue to shine in our hearts and the fond memories we have of her.
“I love and miss you so much sister and I wish you would not leave us so soon. I hope now that you have eternal peace and find rest with the Father of Souls.’
A second sibling, Nicole Marshall, told BNC Dallas Fort Worth: “The most we can say is that the relationship was toxic.
“We were shocked because before it was an uninterrupted relationship. It was rock, we knew it.
“She broke the news to our mother (about the marriage) and of course our mother told us, we definitely didn’t see it coming. And no, there was no wedding, so we weren’t involved, unfortunately.
Ms. Chapman began working with the Duchess of York as her first job after graduating from New York’s Syracuse University with a degree in TV, film and production.
In a statement published on her Instagram page, the Duchess wrote: “I am shocked and saddened to learn that Jenean Chapman, who worked with me as my personal assistant many years ago, has been killed in Dallas at the age of 46. year. One suspect is in custody.
“Jenean was loyal, hardworking, beautiful and fun and my heart breaks for her family and friends. I only heard about her a few months ago and she seemed very happy. Her family is raising money to fly her body to New York City and pay for legal and funeral expenses.
“I will make a donation and support the family in any way I can – please help me if you can at the link in bio.”
Patrick is now being held at the North Tower Detention Center (pictured) after being booked at 4.06pm yesterday, authorities in Dallas County revealed
Ms. Chapman may have remained undetected for several days (Photo with Barack Obama)
Ms Chapman met many celebrities through her work, including Muhammad Ali (pictured left)
Ms Chapman’s three sisters all commented on the Duchess’s post to thank her for sharing the news.
Among those who gave their support to Sarah Ferguson were Naomi Campbell, Suze Orman and Kate Garraway.
Campbell said: “Shock Sarah, I’m so sorry… sending you her family’s love and condolences.”
Orman added: ‘Sarah, I’m so sorry to know how close you are with your assistants. My love to her family and you.’
According to her LinkedIn page, Ms Chapman worked with Sarah Ferguson for four years between 2001 and 2005 where she helped with the Duchess’s travel, press and tour plans, as well as handling her research and diary.
Ms Chapman’s family said that after living in New York, she had worked in San Francisco before traveling to Dallas for a new job.
Speaking to reporters after her body was found, Ms Chapman’s sister Nicole Marshall said: ‘She was a force to be reckoned with, she was a role model.
“She was a wonderful person and I still look up to her. I always look at it as what I wanted to achieve in my corporate career.’
Another brother, Crystal Marshall, said: ‘Her first job out of college was working with Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York.
So she worked with the royal family as a personal assistant, and then, she worked at Def Jam, so she worked with the Simmons family.
As well as working with numerous artists, photos shared by her siblings showed that Ms Chapman’s work also saw her rub shoulders with celebrities such as Barack Obama, Muhammad Ali and Adam Carolla.
Nicole added: “She was just a complete intellectual. She was a kind and compassionate person. She had a heart of flesh.’
The Duchess of York said: “Jenean was loyal, hardworking, beautiful and fun and my heart breaks for her family and friends.”
Police discovered Ms Chapman’s body at her home on Elm Street, Dallas, at around 1.15pm on Monday, September 25. Officers reportedly told her family that her body could have been in the apartment for several days.
Her death was initially investigated as ‘unexplained’, before a post-mortem ruled her death a homicide.
A day later James Patrick, 48, was arrested by University of Texas Police on suspicion of murder.
Ms Chapman’s family has set up a fundraiser to help with the costs of transporting her body from Texas to New York City and funeral fees. You can watch this here.
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