Rowlett man pleads guilty to federal charges after being accused of killing ex-girlfriend

A Rowlett man accused of shooting and stabbing his girlfriend during a custody battle pleaded guilty Wednesday to multiple federal charges, the U.S. attorney’s office for the Northern District of Texas said.

Andrew Charles Beard, 35, pleaded guilty to charges of cyberstalking using a dangerous weapon resulting in death and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.

Beard’s girlfriend, 24-year-old Alyssa Burkett, was shot in the head and stabbed 13 times as she arrived at the Carrollton apartment complex she managed the morning of Oct. 2, 2020. The two had been fighting for custody of their daughter, who was 1 year old at the time of Burkett’s death.

Authorities previously said Burkett had been awarded custody of the girl just days before she was killed.

In plea papers, Beard admitted that he put a GPS tracker on Burkett’s car and wore a disguise and bought a black SUV to use during the attack. He followed her to the Carrollton complex and shot her in the head with a shotgun while she was sitting in the driver’s seat of her car, the attorney’s office said.

Burkett got out of her car and tried to get help when Beard ran up to her from behind and stabbed her 13 times in her upper body. She died as he drove away, the attorney’s office said.

Burkett’s mother and coworkers told authorities that Burkett was afraid of Beard and believed he was tracking her. Her boyfriend at the time of the attack said Beard seemed “overly obsessed” with Burkett and their daughter.

Beard was pulled over by police three hours after the attack as he drove away from his home. Police found three phones in his possession, including a burner and one that had an internet search for “what is the best way to remove gunpowder residue from hands,” the attorney’s office said.

The day after Burkett’s death, investigators found the SUV Beard used during the attack abandoned in a neighborhood near his home. Blood in the car matched Burkett’s, and a fake beard found inside had DNA on it that matched Beard, the attorney’s office said.

About a month before the attack, Beard planted guns and drugs in Burkett’s car and called in a fake tip to police, the attorney’s office said. In plea papers, Beard admitted he used the name “Frank Marrow” to make the call and told police to check Burkett’s car and spare tire for drugs, the attorney’s office said.

Officers found drugs and an illegal pistol in her car. Burkett denied selling drugs and told police she believed Beard had planted the items

After Burkett’s death, police searched Beard’s home and car and found a pair of men’s hiking boots cut up and soaking in bleach, a battery that matched a GPS tracker found on Burkett’s car, and a written script Beard used to make the drug tip.

Beard turned himself in to police three days after the shooting, after Carrollton police got a warrant for his arrest in Burkett’s slaying.

He posted a $1 million bond several days after his arrest, but was taken back into custody later that month on a federal weapons charge and ordered to remain behind bars.

Beard is scheduled to be sentenced Oct 6 and faces up to two life sentences in federal prison.