JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Brunswick man pled guilty to the murder of his 63-year-old aunt on Thursday, according to the Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office.
William Edward Best, 39, pled guilty to felony murder as part of a plea deal. His charges stem from the December 23, 2020 death of Lula Mae McDougler.
On the morning of the incident, Brunswick police and fire crews responded to a house fire in Brunswick. Once the flames were put out, the body of McDougler was found in the debris.
An autopsy determined that the woman died from smoke and soot inhalation, however, she also had blunt head trauma from an assault and burns from the fire. The fire was later determined to be arson by the Brunswick Fire Department Fire Inspector.
Best was identified as a suspect in the arson and death, "immediately", according to officials. On the morning of the fire, Best and his aunt had reportedly gotten into a "heated" argument at another home causing a family member to intervene.
When Best came to the police department for an interview that day, investigators noticed that he had blood on his shoes. The blood was later tested and determined to be McDougler’s blood by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab. Her blood was also found on other items of his clothes.
When investigators asked Best to hand over his clothes as evidence, he reportedly made spontaneous statements that he had “killed the b----, I killed her, I killed her.”
He will be sentenced to life with the possibility of parole on Feb. 13.
