Case # 15NF1732
Date: June 25, 2015
MAN TO BE ARRAIGNED FOR SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES STABBING-MURDER OF GIRLFRIEND AND THEIR INFANT
SANTA ANA – A man is scheduled to be arraigned today for the special circumstances stabbing-murder of his girlfriend and their infant. Kwame Adom Carpenter, 24, Anaheim, is charged with two felony counts of murder with special circumstances for committing multiple murders and a sentencing enhancement allegation for the personal use of a deadly weapon. If convicted, he faces a minimum sentence of life is state prison without the possibility of parole. The special circumstances in this case makes Carpenter eligible for the death penalty, and the District Attorney will make this determination at a later date as is customary. Carpenter is being held without bail and is scheduled to be arraigned this morning, June 25, 2015, in Department CJ-1, Central Jail, Santa Ana.
At the time of the crime, Carpenter and 24-year-old Moureen Gathua were living together with their 6-month-old son, Kyan Gathua-Carpenter, in an Anaheim apartment.
At approximately 12:00 p.m. on June 22, 2015, Carpenter is accused of getting into a verbal argument with Gathua in their apartment. During the course of the argument, Gathua picked up Gathua-Carpenter, and the defendant is accused of stabbing both of the victims with a kitchen knife. The defendant is accused of fleeing the scene in a relative’s car.
The Anaheim Police Department (APD), who investigated this case, responded to a 911 call and found both victims suffering from stab wounds. Gathua was pronounced dead at the scene. Gathua-Carpenter was transported to a nearby hospital, where he died.
At approximately 3:00 a.m. on June 23, 2015, Santa Ana Police Department (SAPD) officers located the defendant sleeping in the back seat of the car in the parking lot of Fountain Valley Regional Hospital. The defendant is accused of driving away from SAPD officers. An SAPD officer fired a single shot, but did not hit the defendant. Carpenter is accused of leading SAPD and Fountain Valley Police Department (FVPD) officers on a vehicle pursuit. He is accused of crashing the vehicle in Mile Square Park in Santa Ana and jumping into a nearby lake. APD arrived at the scene and arrested the defendant, and he was then transported to a hospital to be treated for minor injuries sustained from an FVPD K-9 bite during his arrest.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Steve McGreevy of the Homicide Unit is prosecuting this case.