Sarah Ferguson's long-time personal assistant 'undiscovered for days'

Body of Sarah Ferguson’s long-time personal assistant ‘had lain undiscovered for days’ as her husband is arrested 200 miles away for her murder and Duchess of York says she is ‘shocked and saddened’

• The body of Jenean Chapman, 46, was found at her Dallas home on Monday

The husband of Sarah Ferguson’s former personal assistant who was found dead this week has been arrested on suspicion of murder, her grieving family has said, after they were informed her body may have tragically lain undiscovered for days.

Jenean Chapman, who had been married for just two months to James Patrick, 48, was discovered by police at her apartment in Dallas, Texas on Monday, five months after moving to the city. 

Patrick, who was arrested 200 miles away in Austin, Texas on Wednesday, remains in custody, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth reported.

The Duchess of York last night said she was ‘shocked and saddened’ to learn of the death of Ms Chapman, who she had previously worked with as a member of the Royal Family.

The 63-year-old said her former assistant, 46, was a ‘loyal, hardworking, beautiful and fun’ woman and pledged to help her family pay for her funeral costs.

Sarah Ferguson has paid tribute to her former personal assistant Jenean Chapman after she was killed in Texas. Pictured: The Duchess of York (left) in a car with Ms Chapman (right)

Jenean Chapman, who had been married for just two months to James Patrick, 48, was discovered by police at her apartment in Dallas, Texas on Monday

The Duchess of York last night said she was ‘shocked and saddened’ to learn of the death of Ms Chapman 

Police originally described Ms Chapman’s death as unexplained until a post-mortem the following day found that her death was a homicide. 

Her loved ones allege that Patrick, who had known Ms Chapman for six years, was physically abusive towards his wife and described their relationship as ‘toxic’. 

Writing on Instagram, sister Crystal Marshall said that the time since learning of Ms Chapman’s death had been ‘the worst days of my life’.

She added: ‘My sister was recently a victim of physical abuse and her life was brutally taken away from her. 

‘She had so much to look forward to and impacted so many people in her life. Her accomplishments are too many to count. 

‘Even though her presence is no longer with us her light will continue to shine in our hearts and fond memories we have of her. 

‘I love and miss you dearly sis and wish you weren’t taken away from us so soon. I hope now that you have eternal peace and find rest in the Father of Spirits.’

A second sibling, Nicole Marshall, told told BNC Dallas Fort Worth: ‘The most we can just say is that the relationship was toxic.

‘We were shocked because before that it was an on-and-off relationship. It was rocky, we were aware of that. 

‘She broke the news to our mother [about the marriage] and of course our mother told us, we definitely didn’t see that coming. And no, there was no wedding, so we weren’t involved, unfortunately.’ 

Ms Chapman began working with the Duchess of York as her first job after graduating from New York’s Syracuse University with a degree in TV, film and production.

Ms Chapman may have lain undiscovered for several days (Pictured with Barack Obama)

Ms Chapman met multiple celebrities through her work, including Muhammad Ali (pictured left)

In a statement released on her Instagram page, the Duchess wrote: ‘I am shocked and saddened to learn that Jenean Chapman, who worked with me as my personal assistant many years ago, has been murdered in Dallas aged just 46. A suspect is in custody.

‘Jenean was loyal, hardworking, beautiful and fun and my heart breaks for her family and friends. I heard from her just a couple of months ago and she seemed so happy. Her family is raising money to transport her body back to New York City and pay for legal and funeral costs.

READ MORE: Sarah Ferguson reveals her long time personal assistant has been in murdered in Texas – as the Duchess of York says she is ‘shocked and saddened’

‘I will be making a donation and supporting the family in any way possible – please help if you can at the link in my bio.’

Ms Chapman’s three sisters all commented on the Duchess’ post to thank her for sharing the news.

Among those lending their support to Sarah Ferguson were Naomi Campbell, Suze Orman and Kate Garraway.

Campbell said: ‘Shocking Sarah, I’m so sorry… sending you love and her family condolences.’

Orman added: ‘Sarah I’m so so sorry I know how close you get to your assistants. My love to her family and you.’ 

According to her LinkedIn page, Ms Chapman worked with Sarah Ferguson for four years between 2001 and 2005 where she assisted with the Duchess’s travel, press and tour plans, as well as handling her research and diary.

Ms Chapman’s family said that after living in New York, she had worked in San Francisco before travelling to Dallas for a new job.

Speaking to reporters after her body was found, Ms Chapman’s sister, Nicole Marshall said: ‘She was a force to be reckoned with, she was a role model. 

‘She was an amazing person, and I still look up to her. I always look up to her as what I wanted to accomplish in my corporate career.’

The Duchess of York said: ‘Jenean was loyal, hardworking, beautiful and fun and my heart breaks for her family and friends’

Another sibling, Crystal Marshall, said: ‘Her first job out of college was working with Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York. 

‘So she worked with the royal family as a personal assistant, and then from there, she worked at Def Jam, so she worked with the Simmons family.’

As well as working with multiple artists photos shared by her siblings showed Ms Chapman’s job also saw her rubbing shoulders with celebrities such as Barack Obama, Muhammad Ali and Adam Carolla.

Nicole added: ‘She was just an accomplished intellectual. She was a kind person and compassionate. She had a heart of mush.’

Police discovered Ms Chapman’s body at her apartment in Elm Street, Dallas, at around 1.15pm on Monday, September 25. Officers reportedly told her family her body may have lain in the flat for several days.

Her passing was initially investigated as ‘unexplained’, before a post-mortem determined her death was a homicide.

A day later James Patrick, 48, was arrested by University of Texas Police on suspicion of murder.

Ms Chapman’s family has set up a fundraiser to help with the costs of transporting her body from Texas to New York City and the funeral fees. You can view this here.

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