US man caught on camera dumping pregnant girlfriend's body on highway in 2020 sentenced for murder

By Sunita Iyer | First Published Dec 1, 2023, 11:51 AM IST

The article details the conviction and sentencing of Goey Charles to 25 years to life for the second-degree murder of his pregnant girlfriend, Vanessa Pierre, whose lifeless body he callously dumped on a New York expressway three years ago.

A 33-year-old man in the United States, Goey Charles, has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the murder of his pregnant girlfriend, 29-year-old Vanessa Pierre. Charles was captured on video dumping Pierre's lifeless body on the side of an expressway in New York in October 2020. In November, he was found guilty of one count of second-degree murder. Charles was apprehended three days after Vanessa Pierre's body was discovered on Horace Harding Expressway in Bayside, Queens.

Queens District Attorney Melina Katz emphasized the brutality of the crime and Charles' remorseless actions in discarding the body of his girlfriend, who was expecting their child. In a press release, Katz stated, "We asked for the maximum sentence because of the brutality of the crime and the defendant's remorseless discarding of the lifeless body of his girlfriend, the woman who was soon to be the mother of his child. The sentence does not bring Vanessa back, but it achieves justice in her memory."

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The New York Post reported that Goey Charles' conviction stemmed from surveillance footage capturing him dragging the lifeless body of Vanessa Pierre from a car and discarding her on the side of an expressway on the morning of October 23, 2020. Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison of the New York Police Department (NYPD) shared the disturbing clip on Twitter, providing details of the tragic discovery. In his tweet, Harrison stated, "On October 23rd in the confines of the 111th precinct, 29-year-old Vanessa Pierre and her unborn baby were found deceased laying facedown on the sidewalk off of Horace Harding Expressway."

On October 23rd in the confines of the 111th precinct, 29-year-old Vanessa Pierre and her unborn baby were found deceased laying facedown on the sidewalk off of Horace Harding Expressway. pic.twitter.com/OiTW0AMzud

— NYPD Chief of Department (@NYPDChiefOfDept)

The footage revealed Pierre initially moving around in the backseat of her car. However, approximately an hour later, Charles, aged 33, was seen exiting the vehicle, dragging her lifeless body behind him, and callously dumping her on the sidewalk. The shocking video also captured him returning to the driver's seat of the vehicle, which was registered in Pierre's name. The sequence of events, as depicted in the surveillance footage, played a crucial role in Charles' conviction for the second-degree murder of Vanessa Pierre.

The discovery of the woman's body was made by a bus driver, who found her with a pair of grey sweatpants wrapped around her neck. An autopsy later revealed that her cause of death was asphyxia resulting from compression of the neck.

As reported by the Post, at the time of the incident, Pierre was six months pregnant with Goey Charles' child. Despite her love for him and her desire for a family, her sister, Melissa Pierre, cautioned her about the man in 2020, stating, "She loved him and she wanted a family, but I told her this man is not it." Melissa highlighted that Vanessa never engaged in altercations with anyone and never raised her voice, emphasizing her sister's excitement about the impending arrival of the baby.

Almost three years after the tragic incident, Charles was convicted of second-degree murder on a Wednesday. Queens Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Holder presided over the case and sentenced Charles to 25 years to life in prison. The sentencing marks a significant legal resolution to the case that unfolded in 2020.

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