Woman accused of killing Heidi Broussard to steal baby will take plea deal, 55-year sentence

A woman who investigators say befriended Austin mother Heidi Broussard a decade before killing her and kidnapping her then-2-week-old daughter in 2019 is expected to accept a plea deal next week for 55 years in prison, according to the Travis County district attorney's office.

Magen Fieramusca, 37, is expected to plead guilty Jan. 31 to a charge of murder in Broussard's death, a case that began with a desperate search by family and neighbors for the missing 33-year-old mom and her infant.

One week after Broussard was last seen, detectives found her body stuffed inside a duffel bag in the trunk of a car parked outside Fieramusca's home northwest of Houston. They also rescued Broussard's child, Margo Carey, who was inside the house with Fieramusca.

More:What we know about the woman accused of killing Heidi Broussard, kidnapping baby in 2019

Investigators said Fieramusca had pretended to be pregnant while Broussard was pregnant, then kidnapped and fatally strangled Broussard a couple of weeks after Broussard gave birth, with the plan to pass off Broussard's child as her own.

"We hope that this outcome brings some closure and allows the Broussard and Carey families to continue their healing process," the Travis County DA's office said in a statement. "Our hearts continue to break for them and their immeasurable loss."

Fieramusca was originally charged with capital murder. Fieramusca's attorney, Brian Erskine, said he felt the plea agreement was appropriate.

"As charged, Ms. Fieramusca was looking at life without the possibility of parole," Erskine said. "After considerable discussion, in conjunction with significant compelling mitigation related to Ms. Fieramusca and the possible appellate issues related to the search of her residence, both parties feel that this is the appropriate resolution. I imagine many have questions that will never be adequately answered. Nevertheless, I hope that this plea brings some closure to this family’s great loss."

Fieramusca, who family and friends say had met Broussard through a church-affiliated program and been friends with her for years, acted suspiciously soon after Broussard gave birth at a hospital in Austin, according to investigators. The newborn’s grandfather noted that Fieramusca interrupted his first meeting with his granddaughter, asking to hold the baby first.

Broussard vanished Dec. 12, 2019, with Margo, touching off a frantic search that drew national attention. A neighbor of Broussard's told police that she saw Broussard and Fieramusca hug outside Broussard's Austin apartment, then saw Broussard get into Fieramusca's vehicle with her infant, investigators testified during a court hearing last year.

Fieramusca's then-boyfriend, Christopher Green, told investigators that he had witnessed Fieramusca's belly grow during her pregnancy, but they had a rocky relationship and he never saw her pregnant stomach, according to audio of the interview played in court. She told him she was carrying his child. When a Texas Ranger asked Green where she gave birth, he said: "She's been really distant with me about that stuff. I don't know why."

One day, Green came home, and there was an infant on the bed in his house, he told the Rangers.

An investigator with the Texas Rangers approached Fieramusca outside the home on Dec. 19, 2019, while Green was out shopping for baby formula. Fieramusca, who was holding a baby monitor, told the investigator she had given birth on Dec. 12, 2019, at a birthing center in The Woodlands and went home later that day.

Pressed for the specific birthing center, Fieramusca said she could not remember it.

Texas Rangers detained Fieramusca in her backyard for roughly seven hours while they waited for warrants, as victims services personnel and an Austin police officer stayed inside with the baby.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Magen Fieramusca expected to take plea deal in Heidi Broussard murder