Pineville woman given life sentence for killing pregnant woman, unborn child

A woman from Pineville, Missouri, has been given a life sentence in prison without parole.

In July, 44-year-old Amber Waterman pleaded guilty in federal court to the kidnapping and murder of a pregnant Arkansas woman and her victim’s unborn child.

Tuesday, she was given the life sentence behind bars.

Waterman admitted that she kidnapped Ashley Bush in order to claim her unborn child, Valkyrie Willis, as her own. Waterman transported Ashley Bush from Maysville, Ark., to Pineville.

The kidnapping resulted in the deaths of both Ashley Bush and Valkyrie Willis.

Waterman admitted that, using a false name, she began having contact via Facebook with Bush, who was approximately 31 weeks pregnant. Waterman pretended to help Bush obtain employment, suggesting she had a job opportunity for her. That prompted an in-person meeting between the two women on Oct. 28, 2022, at the Gravette, Ark., public library. They agreed to meet again on Oct. 31, 2022.

On Oct. 31, 2022, at roughly 11:45 a.m., Bush met Waterman at the Handi-Stop convenience store in Maysville, Ark. Under the pretext that Waterman was taking her to meet a supervisor to further discuss employment, Bush got into a truck driven by Waterman. Waterman then kidnapped and abducted Bush, driving her from Maysville to the Waterman residence in Pineville.

At about 5 p.m. on Oct. 31, 2022, first responders reported to the Longview store in Pineville for an emergency call of a baby who was not breathing. Waterman admitted that she claimed to first responders that she had given birth to the child in the truck while on the way to the hospital. But in reality, she admitted, the child was Bush’s child, who died in utero, as a result of Waterman’s kidnapping that resulted in the death of Bush.

An autopsy indicated that Bush died as a result of penetrating trauma of the torso and her death was classified as a homicide.