‘I broke ur trust': Warrant reveals cheating, gruesome scene in Plantation double murder

A newly-unredacted arrest warrant details the marital issues a Plantation couple was having and the gruesome scene family members and police found after a double murder and attempted suicide at their home last week.

Jean Carlos Aponte, 40, faces two first-degree murder charges in the March 26 killings of his wife, Sara Ashley Gama, and his 2-year-old son, Ethan Aponte, Plantation Police said.

Broward Sheriff's Office

Broward Sheriff's Office

According to the unredacted warrant obtained by NBC6 on Wednesday, police had responded to the home on Northwest 97th Avenue after Aponte allegedly stabbed his wife and child and tried to commit suicide by drug overdose.

The couple's four-month-old child was found unharmed in the home.

The warrant said Aponte was supposed to drop off one of the couple's children at Gama's parents' Pembroke Pines home, but they became concerned when he didn't arrive and Aponte and Gama weren't answering their phones, which was unusual.

Gama's parents drove to the family's home and when they arrived they heard the family's dog barking incessantly and the infant crying uncontrollably, and "could tell by the baby's cry that something was wrong" so they entered the home, the warrant said.

Once inside, Gama's father found his daughter laying on the kitchen floor covered in blood and apparently not breathing.

Gama's father called 911 and said he found his son-in-law, Aponte, unconscious on the master bedroom floor. He said Ethan Aponte was missing.

The 4-month-old was found unharmed in an infant swinging chair, the warrant said.

Police and fire rescue responded and found Gama with stab wounds and slashes to her neck area. Ethan Aponte was found facedown in the home's pool, also with stab wounds in his neck area, the warrant said.

Both were pronounced dead at the scene.

Aponte was "laying in the supine position and had labored breathing" and was unresponsive but had a faint pulse, the warrant said.

He was given Narcan and taken to Westside Regional Hospital, where he was eventually stabilized.

Investigators found bloody footprints in the home's hallway, along with several pools and smears of blood in master bedroom, and a blood-soaked rug, the warrant said.

They also found two kitchen knives on a counter that were covered in blood, the warrant said.

Gama's father said he was "unaware of any marital issues" and "knew them to have a happy marriage" but said Aponte suffered from PTSD from his deployments in Iraq while in the Marine Corp, the warrant said.

"He stated that he believed that Jean managed his 'issues' well most of the time, but knew him to have a few anger outbursts; although they were never violent in nature," the warrant said. "He knew that Jean recently saw a doctor at the VA's office for medication, but was unsufe exactly what for. He knew that Jean recently complained about trouble sleeping and was taking Ambien and Melatonin to help him sleep."

Gama's father described Aponte as a loving father and husband and never saw him aggressive or violent, the warrant said.

Aponte's mother and sister told investigators he suffered from depression and a traumatic brain injury from a fight several years ago, which left him with constant pain, the warrant said.

Aponte sought help for his mental health and started to file a claim with Veteran Affairs to get an official diagnosis. He had also reached out to a veterans foundation last year for its services to help with his PTSD and the traumatic brain injury.

Hospital staff said it appeared Aponte had tried to overdose on several of his prescribed medications but had no other injuries other than a minor cut on the top of his hand, the warrant said.

Investigators initially couldn't find Aponte or Gama's cellphones, but returned the next day and found their phones in the waterway behind the home, the warrant said.

When they searched Gama's phone, investigators found messages discussing marital issues and Aponte having an extra-marital affair that had been recently discovered, the warrant said.

"So let me ask you - when you went to Colombia for your dad's funeral what happened there," Gama asked in one message. "Because there are tons of escorts there."

"I understand I broke ur trust," Aponte responded.

"You broke a lot of things. It's quite serious," Gama wrote. "You also broke our marriage vows."

"I'm not a good person," Aponte wrote.

"And you're realizing this just now as your come to Jesus moment," Gama responded.

Gama's phone's search history revealed she searched "just found out my husband cheated on me years ago" and "how does alimony work in Florida," and visited a divorce lawyer website, the warrant said.

The warrant also said cameras in the home captured the couple arguing the morning of the killings.

At one point, a female voice is heard saying "because with your meetings and everything you cannot have full custody," the warrant said.

"So I hope those videos and everything that you got and all that stuff from the super bowl in Germany where she was skinny and all that you wanted. I hope she was worth it, don't come after my money, don't come after anything," the voice says. "And we should have signed a prenup, we should have signed one."

Later on, the cameras captured a child's screams and a male voice yelling, the warrant said.

An autopsy found the 2-year-old had four stab wounds to his neck and defensive injuries to his hand, the warrant said. His cause of death was listed as sharp force injury and drowning.

Gama was stabbed 28 times and had wounds to her face and neck area and her abdomen, police said. She was also discovered with fractures and defensive wounds. Officials said her cause of death was by sharp force injury.

Early on March 27, Aponte was medically stable and able to breathe on his own, the warrant said. He had his first court appearance on Sunday, where a judge ordered him to undergo a mental health screening.

A GoFundMe was established for Gama and her son's funeral services.