U.S. soldier serving abroad watches in horror on FaceTime as his pregnant wife is stabbed by an intruder

  • Soldier Corey Moss, 19, was arrested in Fort Bliss, Texas, in the knife attack on 31-year-old Rachel Poole
  • Mrs Poole suffered critical injuries just a week before delivering her baby, who is said to be in good condition
  • Woman recognized her assailant during attack as a man who owed her husband money for car repairs
  • Army Pvt Justin Pele Poole watched the attack on video chat from his posting in southwest Asia
  • Mr Poole wrote on Facebook that his wife had lost an eye in the attack

By Snejana Farberov

PUBLISHED: 12:56 EST, 1 November 2013 | UPDATED: 07:33 EST, 2 November 2013


A pregnant Texas woman has been stabbed multiple times by an intruder as her horrified soldier husband serving overseas helplessly watched the attack play out in real time on video chat.

Rachel Poole, 31, was talking to her husband, Justin Pele Poole, on FaceTime Wednesday night when a man identified as 19-year-old Corey Moss broke into their El Paso home and lunged at her with a knife.

According to an arrest affidavit obtained by KFOX14, Mrs Poole recognized her assailant as a man who owed her husband money and screamed out his name.

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Horror show: Rachel Poole (left), who is nine months pregnant, was stabbed multiple times by an intruder in her home as her husband Justin (right), who is deployed overseas, watched in horror on video chat

Ambush: El Paso police say Moss went to the Pooles' home in the 9400 block of Wichita Circle, broken in and waited for Rachel to come home

Ambush: El Paso police say Moss went to the Pooles' home in the 9400 block of Wichita Circle, broken in and waited for Rachel to come home

The 31-year-old mother-to-be, who is nine months pregnant, was rushed to University Medical Center in critical condition suffering from multiple stab wounds and fractures to her body and face.

Doctors said her unborn baby girl, who is due in a week, was in good condition. The couple plan to name her Isabella.

 

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According to police, the wounded victim was able to call 911 and give the name of the suspect to police.

Meanwhile, Justin Poole called the 19-year-old's co-workers, who helped apprehend Moss and seized the knife allegedly used in the attack.

Suspect: Cory Bernard Moss, 19, allegedly admitted to the knife attack, which was reportedly sparked by a money dispute

Suspect: Cory Bernard Moss, 19, allegedly admitted to the knife attack, which was reportedly sparked by a money dispute

Following his arrest, police said Moss admitted to stabbing Rachel Poole

The teenager has been charged with criminal attempted capital murder and was ordered held on $60,000 bond.

Neighbors told KFOX14 they that Moss owed the Pooles money for car repairs because he had borrowed a vehicle from them and wrecked it.

According to El Paso police, Moss, a soldier attached to Fort Bliss, went to the Pooles' home in the 9400 block of Wichita Circle to talk to Rachel about the money he owed her husband.

The woman wasn't home, so the 19-year-old allegedly forced his way into the house and lay in ambush, waiting for Mrs Poole to return.

When Poole came home, she opened the Apple video chat program FaceTime on her phone and began talking to her husband, who is stationed in southwest Asia.

Joy and sorrow: Mr Poole (top right) wrote that their unborn baby girl (bottom right) is doing fine, but his wife (left) had lost an eye

Joy and sorrow: Mr Poole (top right) wrote that their unborn baby girl (bottom right) is doing fine, but his wife (left) had lost an eye

A short time later, police say Moss came out of hiding and surprised Rachel Poole from behind, repeatedly stabbing her with a foldout stainless steel knife and beating her.

According to the affidavit, the victim instantly recognized Moss as her husband's debtor and yelled out his name several times so Justin could hear it over the phone.

Following the attack, police say Moss fled and called a co-worker to pick him up and drive him to Fort Bliss.

Meanwhile, Justin Pele Poole called Moss' colleagues to alert them of the suspect’s imminent return to the military base.

The 19-year-old's co-workers intercepted him and found the knife in the car where he was riding.

Fort Bliss spokesman Joe Buccino said that Army Pvt Poole has been deployed in southwest Asia for the past nine months, HLN-TV reported.

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Long distance: Army Pvt Pele Poole, pictured left and right with his wife, has spent the past nine months serving in southwest Asia

He is scheduled to arrive home in El Paso sometime today, and is not likely to be sent back to his overseas posting in the wake of the attack on his wife.

On Wednesday, a furious Justin Pele Poole took to his Facebook page to express his anger with the situation, writing in part: 'I promised to give my life for this freedom not the other way around. I failed her but never again.’

This afternoon, the soldier wrote on his page that he had the 'hardest conversation' of his life with his wounded wife over the phone.

According to Poole, Rachel told him that she had lost an eye in the attack and asked him if it was a 'deal breaker' for him.

‘My wife is my wife til I'm no longer breathing,’ the serviceman wrote. ‘No man can change that and though I was not here to protect her this time it will never happen again that's my word.’


 

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i'd like this guy to be dead by the time he's 21.

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expecting your first baby is such a wonderful, exciting time. Hopefully they can begin to heal when their little lady arrives as she will overwhelm them with love. Thank goodness all is well with the baby as this story could easily have been even more horrifying. Lock him up and throw away the key.

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Holy cr*p. Put him down.

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I'm in shock, how could he do this? Just pure evil. I hope the baby is delivered healthy and that this family can eventually overcome what happened.

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Every persons nightmare to hear or see this and be able to help. Hope she picks herself up After this trauma. Keep strong x

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So sad she lost an eye but I'm do glad she didn't lose her baby. God bless them all and may she return to good health and live pain free. May her attacker rot in jail

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How horrible!! It must have been terrible for Mr. Poole to hear the attack on his wife and be powerless to do anything about it. I hope that Moss gets life for what he did. He tried to kill Mrs. Poole and her baby. Bless the Pooles and their child.

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All you'd want to do is lay hands on the bloke that did that to your family but must feel totally helpless. Thank goodness they're all ok, what a devoted husband.

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how awful for her but even more so for her husband who watched it from so far away. Hopefully the lad who did this gets a long jail term to give him time to think about the bad choice he made.

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that must been so hard to watch the attack from afar. he must have felt so helpless. thank God they're both ok.

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