Joyce Quaweay, 24

Temple City, Pennsylvania
July 30, 2016

Agencies: Philadelphia Police Department Pennsylvania | Campus Safety Services Temple University Pennsylvania

Cause of death: Beating


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Overview

A former Temple University police officer used his fists and a police baton to beat his girlfriend to death Friday in the Germantown home they shared and he enlisted his best friend, a current Temple officer, to help him, Homicide Capt. James Clark said.

Aaron Wright, 47, has been charged with murder, aggravated assault, unlawful restraint, conspiracy to commit murder, and abuse of a corpse for the death of his girlfriend, 24-year-old Joyce Quaweay. Temple Police Officer Marquis Robinson, 41, the couple's roommate and Wright's best friend, was charged with conspiracy to commit murder, aggravated assault, and abuse of a corpse.

A Temple University spokesman said Wright was dismissed from the force in 2012, but he would not detail why. Robinson was fired from Temple police on Sunday, after criminal charges were filed against him.

According to authorities, Wright, Quaweay, Robinson and Robinson's girlfriend, who has not been identified, lived together at a house on the 4600 block of Greene Street.

Wright was "extremely controlling" and became upset Friday because Quaweay was not submissive enough, Clark said.

Together, Wright and Robinson allegedly stripped Quaweay naked and handcuffed her to a bench. As Wright beat her, Robinson contorted the victim's body so Wright could strike her in multiple places, Clark said.

"He felt like she would not submit to his authority and this was his way of punishing her to try to break her," Clark said.

The unrelenting abuse was witnessed by Wright's two daughters by Quaweay, ages 10 months and 2 years, as well as Wright's two other children, who are around the ages of 8 and 10, police said.

The men continued to beat Quaweay even after she died, according to police, and that is the basis for the abuse of a corpse charge.

Robinson's girlfriend walked in during the assault and called 911 around 10:40 a.m., police said.

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