ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. — A man has been arrested and charged with killing a pregnant woman in St. Peters in what prosecutors call a "targeted act of violence."
The family of 22-year-old Amethyst Killian reported her missing on Nov. 26, saying she had gone to a convenience store on Main Street to buy cigarettes and never returned, according to a probable cause statement.
The next day, Killian's boyfriend and stepfather searched for her and found her purse and clothing on North Church Road, about 75 yards from her home. They called police, who found Killian's body under heavy brush. Officers also found a knife nearby.
Killian had been stabbed multiple times in the head, neck and abdomen, the statement says. The baby she had been carrying was dead.
Investigators searched through Killian's phone records and found she used an app called Text Now to communicate with a man, 27-year-old Damion Delgado, the statement says. Police went to Delgado's home in O'Fallon, Missouri and learned he had tried to kill himself and was taken to DePaul Hospital.
St. Charles County Prosecutor Tim Lohmar said the two had used the app to meet on the evening of Nov. 26. Surveillance cameras near the convenience store captured video of Delgado.
"This was not a random act of violence," Lohmar said during a press conference on Thursday. "This was a targeted act of violence."
Investigators analyzed the blood found at the crime scene and on the knife and matched it to Delgado. He faces charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder and armed criminal action.
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