SEDGWICK COUNTY — A Kansas man charged with killing his pregnant girlfriend was found dead in his jail cell.
Just after 5:30 a.m. Thursday, Sedgwick County detention facility staff located an unresponsive inmate identified as 22-year-old Alexander Lewis in Pod 18 of the facility, according to Sheriff's Lt. Nathan Gibbs.
On-site medical staff and Emergency Medical Services were notified and attempted life saving measures. On scene medical. personnel pronounced Lewis deceased on scene.
Lewis had been in the custody of the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office since August 26, 2023, for a capital murder charge in connection with the death of Zaiylah Bronson, a Wichita State University student who was studying to become a math teacher. She was about 16 weeks pregnant.
Court record showed Lewis searched online for information about “snapping necks" and abortion before Bronson's body was found in the trunk of his car.
The affidavit showed Lewis’ cellphone web browsing history also included searches about stun guns, lethal weapons and murder.
Lewis was jailed on a $500,000 bond and charged with capital murder.
The killing happened at Bronson's apartment near the WSU campus, according to the affidavit. Surveillance cameras last recorded Bronson alive at 8:13 a.m. on Aug. 26, when the couple took a dog out into the courtyard. Soon after, he searched for “snapping necks" then left to move his car closer to her door and retrieve a backpack containing items that included duct tape and towels, the affidavit said. Other troublesome searches, including for “weapons that can kill,” had occurred the day before.
At 10:24 a.m., surveillance video showed Bronson's feet dangling from a blanket-wrapped bundle as Lewis lugged her out of the apartment. He then drove off, searching online for murder before he called 911 about an hour later, the affidavit said.
When officers arrived at Lewis' apartment, he told them Bronson was in his car trunk, saying, “I got scared," according to the affidavit. An ax and shovel were also found in the trunk.
He explained to the officers Bronson had broken up with him the day before and that they argued throughout the night. He said eventually “he wanted her to stop talking, so he ‘grabbed her’” around the neck with his arm and squeezed “until she stopped moving,” the affidavit said.