Stalking Warrant Came Hours Before Killing. Ex Gets Life.

She Had Reported the Stalking

A stalking warrant had been issued just two hours before a woman was killed inside her Celina home. Her former boyfriend, Karl Andrew Stanley, has now been convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis announced the conviction on October 15. Stanley, 55, had pleaded not guilty, but jurors deliberated for less than an hour before returning their verdict, according to the prosecutor’s office.

The woman had repeatedly reported Stanley’s unwanted behavior to police before the November 2024 killing. Prosecutors presented the attack as retaliation for those reports, linking the events at her home to the stalking she had asked officers to address.

La Prensa identified her as Paola Becvar, a 51-year-old lawyer who was global director of regulatory affairs at Edgewell Personal Care. She had a daughter and family in Peru, the newspaper reported.

A Worker Called Police During the Break In

On November 25, 2024, a carpenter working at the home in Celina’s Mustang Lakes subdivision called police. According to the district attorney’s account, he reported that Stanley had broken into the residence and attacked the woman.

The carpenter intervened and took a car jack away from Stanley. Prosecutors said Stanley then followed the woman farther into the home and continued the attack.

Officers found Stanley inside when they arrived. The woman died at the scene despite lifesaving efforts, according to KXII’s original report, which described the emergency call as a burglary in progress.

Police arrested Stanley at the residence. At that early stage, authorities said he knew the victim but did not immediately publicly explain the relationship; the later prosecution identified her as his former girlfriend. Jail records cited by KXII at the time also listed a stalking charge alongside the capital murder charge.

Earlier Reports Led to an Arrest and a Warrant

Detective Frank Alegre testified that the woman began reporting Stanley’s harassment and stalking in early November. Officers had warned him to stay away from her home.

Stanley was arrested for violating that trespass warning two days before the killing, according to the district attorney’s release. FOX 4 reported that he was released on bond before returning to the woman’s home.

Prosecutor Cresta Garland told the station that the behavior had escalated after the relationship ended in May 2024. She described repeated calls, text messages and uninvited appearances at the woman’s home.

Alegre also testified that he obtained the separate stalking arrest warrant two hours before the fatal attack. His testimony placed the warrant after the trespass arrest and before the killing.

A Search Turned Up a List in His Vehicle

Investigators recovered the car jack outside the residence, consistent with the carpenter’s account. The district attorney’s office said laboratory analysis also linked evidence collected from Stanley to the victim.

A search of his vehicle uncovered a document labeled as a grudge list. The victim’s name appeared first, and FOX 4 reported that other names and government agencies were listed below it.

The station also reported that investigators found a Halloween mask bearing words associated with anger and shame. Prosecutors discussed those items as evidence from the investigation; the reporting did not establish that Stanley carried out attacks against other people on the list.

Stanley testified in his own defense, FOX 4 reported. The jury found him guilty of capital murder.

Judge Richard Davis imposed the automatic life-without-parole sentence required for this conviction, the district attorney’s office said.

References: DA Greg Willis Announces Life Without Parole Sentence for Celina Man Who Murdered Former Girlfriend During Home Invasion | Celina man convicted of murdering his ex was later found with grudge list, Halloween mask | Man charged in woman’s death after alleged assault | Condenan a cadena perpetua a Karl Andrew Stanley por matar a abogada en Texas

The Truth In Facts team was assisted by generative AI technology in creating this content