OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Charges have been filed against a man accused of murdering his ex-wife and taking off with his 5-year-old son.
According to authorities, 31-year-old Samantha Ainsworth was found deceased in her home with witnesses seeing her ex-husband, 34-year-old Chase Ainsworth, leaving the home with their 5-year-old son.
Witnesses also said their daughter ran out of the house, saying her mom was dead.
When officers arrived on scene, they found Samantha “with bleeding wounds, which appeared to have been caused by a sharp instrument.”
“Officers noted a knife was missing from the knife block in the kitchen,” the affidavit reads.
Samantha was taken to OU Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.
An Endangered Persons Alert was issued, and Chase Ainsworth and the boy were located safe
in Oklahoma City.
Court documents show that Samantha tried warning police about his alleged behavior months before her death.
Samantha filed a protective order in February against her ex-husband, who also filed a protective order, but was denied.
Hundreds of text messages, submitted in court, were sent from Ainsworth to Samantha. Many of them contained explicit and threatening conversations. One saying “I’m coming for you.”
In March, a judge issued a felony stalking charge against Ainsworth. He was arrested, but a few days later, he bonded out of jail and then violated the protective order again.
“This is a devastating situation and we will be reaching out to Ms. Ainsworth’s family to
assure them that we intend to prosecute this case to the fullest extent of the law,” says
District Attorney Greg Mashburn. “We know that stalking behavior can be dangerous and bring devastating outcomes. We encourage anyone who is experiencing stalking or domestic violence to reach out to the Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or any of the domestic violence organizations to develop a safety plan. We want to protect our communities and take more steps towards assisting victims.”
Oklahoma City Police said they were called to the home 10 times from February through July.
Police were called out on July 25 – the same day Ainsworth was expected to appear before a judge in Cleveland County for violating the protective order.
That was four days before Samantha’s death.
Ainsworth has now been charged with one count of Murder in the First Degree and one count of
Child Stealing.
He is currently in custody on a $4 million bond and will be arraigned Friday, August 4.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at any time at 800-799-7233.
Additional Local Resources:
Women’s Resource Center: 405-701-5540
222 E. Eufaula St. Norman, OK 73069
Palomar Family Justice Center: 405-552-1010
1140N. Hudson Ave. Oklahoma City, OK 73103
