Drinking The Cool Aid

Ejaz Ahmad // 201 // Leah Ward // Part 1

• Megan and Hanna Hawkins • Season 1 • Episode 201

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In May of 2003, Ejaz Ahmad was shot, stabbed, and decapitated by his wife Leah Ward.  His body was discovered in a shed behind his house in Memphis, Tennessee.  Leah admitted to murdering Ejaz, but said it was in self-defense.  Her trial was in 2005, and the jury did not believe her story.  She was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.

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We’ve discussed stories where women have been the victims of domestic violence, but men can also be victims.  Men are much more likely to keep their situation secret due to embarrassment.  They may be worried that people will make fun of them, or maybe no one will believe them.  According to domesticviolence.org, male victims often put the blame on themselves and are manipulated into thinking that they are the abuser.  It’s normal for victims to act out physically or verbally against the abuser.  Here are a few indicators that something is going on: 

-They put you down or call you names 

-They stop you from seeing friends or family 

-They get angry when drinking alcohol or doing drugs 

-They show signs of jealousy, accusing you of being unfaithful 

-They tell you what to wear, where you can go, or how you can spend your money 

-They won’t allow you to get health care 

-They threaten you with violence or with the use of a weapon 

-They punch, slap, kick, or choke you, your children, or your pets 

-They force you to have sex, or to participate in other sexual acts without your consent 

-They put the blame on you 

-The abuser threatens to tell those closest to you about your sexual orientation or gender identity 

These are just a FEW examples of abuse, and you’ll definitely notice several of the examples throughout this story. 

The month of April was over and 10-year-old Jordan Ahmad (Ahhhhhh-mud) hadn’t heard from his father in 3 weeks. Jordan and his father, Ejaz Ahmad, were very close. He called his father’s house, but the only person who would answer was his father’s new wife, Leah. It was annoying because she gave the same answer every time he called, "your father’s not here," she’d say. Leah told Jordan that his father was in West Memphis, but after several calls, she finally told him that Ejaz had gone to visit his home country of Pakistan. Jordan couldn’t accept this because it just didn’t make sense. 

 

Jordan’s mother, Bonnie Garrett, was divorced from his dad for the second time, but she and her family still loved Ejaz. They respected each other and Bonnie and Ejaz remained friends after the divorce. Jordan’s grandmother, Ernestine Marsh would listen as he called his dad over and over, but he received a different reason from Leah each time about why his dad couldn’t answer. Bonnie even tried to call her ex-husband a few times to find out why he wasn’t communicating with their son, and she was also receiving weird answers. 

 

Since they weren’t getting through to him on the phone, Bonnie and her brother decided to just show up at Ejaz and Leah’s home in Memphis. They knocked on the door, but no one answered. They even went to the mosque where Ejaz worshipped, but they were told that he hadn’t been there for weeks. Ejaz was a man that put family first and he would never go to Pakistan without telling anyone. 

 

On May 1st, 2003, Jordan and his grandma went back to Ejaz’s home. When they arrived, they noticed that the numerous cars Ejaz owned were gone. They went to the side window, located under the carport and saw that all his stuff was gone. There was a large amount of junk all over the porch and in the yard and the shades were tightly drawn. Ernestine said they better go talk to the neighbors. As they rounded the corner, some children shouted from across the street that they’d moved. Ernestine went to talk to the children’s parents, and she was told that Leah had a big moving truck just the day before and the cars were hauled off. A neighbor said that Leah mentioned her husband had gone to Pakistan and she was selling the house because she couldn’t afford it. 

 

The neighbor mentioned that Ejaz hadn’t been at the house for several weeks, but there had been parties over there and there’s a man that mows the lawn. Jordan and Ernestine headed back to the house to collect Jordan’s hen. He had been keeping a hen at his father’s house and it was in a cage, in the yard. As they got close to the cage, they both began gagging. There was a sickening odor coming from the shed and it was not the chicken. Jordan entered the small metal shed. The doors were missing, but there were boards where the chickens could squeeze through. He removed the boards and once he got inside, he saw a motorcycle and several car doors that were stacked against the wall. The shelves had some tin cans and various car parts. Jordan spotted a foam mattress cover and flies were buzzing all around it. Ernestine stepped into the shed and covered her nose. She lifted the foam to peek underneath, and she stumbled backwards. There was no mistaking what her and Jordan had seen. This was a crime scene. 

 

Memphis Police Lieutenant Walter Norris worked in the homicide division. He was a 30-year veteran of the Memphis Police Department, who had been appointed supervisor of this crime scene. He ducked under the crime scene tape to head towards the back yard and he saw the square metal shed that was missing the sliding door. It sat on a flat slab of concrete. Latex gloves were outside the shed’s door. Well, that’s what Walter Norris thought anyways. As he got closer, he realized it was actually pieces of skin from human hands.  

 

The small shed was filled with things such as hay, planks of wood, an old cash register, a car headlight, damp boxes, empty coffee cans, electrical cords, and much more. Walter Norris saw the nude body of a male, with partially decomposed flesh, lying in a fetal position on its right side. The body was about six feet inside the shed and wearing a white and red checked Oxford style shirt that was stiff with body fluid and dirt. The body had been under a foam mattress and underneath the body was a black plastic garbage bag. The right arm and left leg were stretched out, parallel to the shed door. The left arm was bent at the elbow and was folded over the right arm. One of the arms had been stripped of flesh from elbow to wrist. 

 

The right leg was bent at the knee and a wire cable was wrapped around one of the legs and a red rope was tied around one of the victim’s arms. Based off what he saw and the fact that there wasn’t a lot of insect activity around the body yet, Walter Norris believed that the man had been dead for about 2 to 3 weeks. He turned to the other men and asked if they had been inside the home yet, but they said no. He flipped open his notepad and said, “So, where is the victim’s head?” 

 

Jordan’s mom, Bonnie Garrett, was at home when her phone rang around 5:30 PM. She had been so worried about her ex-husband Ejaz, so she quickly answered, and her heart was thumping wildly as her mother told her they found a body. Ernestine was crying and telling Bonnie to hurry. Detective Norris interviewed everyone at the scene and confirmed that they hadn’t identified the victim yet, but they would take prints to find out. Bonnie said she could just identify him, but he said everyone should just go home. Ernestine understood what this meant. She had been the first female police officer in a small Florida town where her husband was the police chief. She had done her fair share of investigating and processing crime scenes. She told Bonnie they should go. 

 

When the detective entered the house, he saw that there was a lot of trash, but most of the furniture and anything of value had been removed. There were a few swords in the home, but you could tell someone had left in a hurry. The rear sliding glass door was found unlocked, but there was no sign of forced entry, no broken glass, and none of the windows showed any signs of being forced open. Officers found various areas around the home with possible blood stains, so they took samples, and they wore masks due to the strong odor in the home. It was the worst in the bedrooms and bathroom. 

 

There was a hallway that stretched between the living room and several bedrooms and a bathroom. There was a trail between the bathroom and living room that looked like a dirty mop was dragged along. The first bedroom was smaller than the others and the odor of death was getting stronger. There was a used condom on the floor near the window, an ATM card, a child’s drawing, and a piece of paper with a number written on it. Some men’s clothing was hanging on the hangers in the closet. The bathroom was small and bare, but the stench was strongest in there. A yellow liquid and several strands of hair trailed from the bathroom door to the closed lid of the toilet. There were two stains in the checkered white tile and a large brown stain in front of the vanity. As investigators stood in the bathroom, they could now clearly see that someone had dragged a dirty mop from the bathroom, down the hall, and into the kitchen. There was a thin, sticky film of dirty residue on the inside of the tub. 

 

The second bedroom had also been cleared out, but there was a backpack with various books and electronics. A packet of tools, some pieces of green material, and a long black belt on the floor. The third bedroom had a computer monitor and a small TV. On the floor near the closet were two keys, a lighter, and a small laundry basket. A bag of hangers was in the closet. A bed was in the master bedroom, but it was a bare mattress and a frame. The carpet had been torn away in some areas, all the way down to the concrete pad. The investigators began to wonder if the master bedroom was the primary crime scene and the shed in the yard was the dump site.  

 

There were various bills in the mailbox postmarked April 29th and a cigar stub was located near the front door. When the body was removed from the shed, skin tissue remained on the concrete pad due to decomposition. Dr. Smith said it was from the victim’s hand, but it was possible they could lift it for identification purposes. Dr. Smith slipped on a latex glove and carefully slid his gloved hand inside the skin and lifted it up. After the body had been moved, it was also discovered that the victim’s penis and scrotum were missing. 

 

The next day, on May 2nd, investigators were combing through the crime scene again. A man approached the home and said he was friends with Ejaz, and he hadn’t seen him for months, but they worshipped together at the same Mosque. He said they spoke about a month ago and Ejaz told him he was having bad problems with his wife. His wife? The officer asked. The man explained that they were married as part of a religion only. 

 

It was confirmed that the victim was Ejaz Ahmad (ahhhh-mud) and the autopsy was performed on June 16th, 2003. Forensic Pathologist Dr. Teresa Campbell determined that Ejaz had two gunshot wounds to the chest, a “contusion in the left upper lobe of the lung, sharp force injuries to the neck and left upper leg, and moderate decomposition.” There were several knife wounds on the body, but she couldn’t determine if they were before or after death. She ordered X-rays and saw a spent bullet over the spine. The bullet had traveled downward on a left to right path. It pierced the heart’s left ventricle, went through the diaphragm and stomach, then ended in the tissues lying over the spine. It was a small caliber, hollow point, copper washed bullet. 

 

There were multiple stab wounds to the neck area where the head had been removed, leaving a pattern of jagged skin. It was believed that the stab wounds were someone’s attempt to locate where to cut the head off. Some of the wounds were up to 1.1 inches long and 2.1 inches deep. Sharp force injury to the left hip, abdomen, and perineum (pair-a-nee-um), which is the area between the scrotum and the anus. There was an injury measuring 10 by 8.5 inches, exposing the femur head. The penis and scrotum were missing. The doctor was able to determine that the body had been shielded from the elements. 

 

Dr. Jennifer Love, a forensic anthropologist, found a marking that was indicative of a cut by a sharp-edged knife, on the cervical vertebrae, the bone located at the back of the neck. There were marks on the victim’s left femoral head indicating someone attempted to cut off the leg and markings on the victim’s forearm were consistent with rodent activity. It appeared that someone had tried to dismember the body with at least 3 different sharp instruments. Investigators had taken some possible blood samples from the crime scene and the results came back from the crime lab. There was no presence of blood, but the skin tissue that was lifted from the concrete pad was positively identified as belonging to Ejaz Ahmad (Ahh-mud). 

 

Detective Norris spoke to some people at the Mosque where Ejaz worshipped and one of them had the phone number in Pakistan where Ejaz visited. They called the number and discovered that Ejaz hadn’t been in Pakistan for a long time. Ejaz had owned a shop in the Memphis Mall where he sold swords and bladed weapons, it was called Regal Imports. He flew to Pakistan to purchase the items then brought them back to Tennessee to sell. He also sold used cars. He was a hard worker and held two master's degrees in engineering. He was kind, modest, ambitious, creative, and he had good manners. He was a flirt, but he followed strict Muslim tradition, and he wouldn’t live with anyone until he was married. The way he met his first wife was pretty interesting.  

 

There was a Pakistani man named Quaiser (Key-zer)  who was really into Ernestine Marsh. He would show up at her door, unannounced, hoping that she would fall for him, but she only wanted to be friends. One day, in 1988, Quaiser brought a friend with him, Ejaz Ahmad. Ernestine’s daughter, Bonnie, was standing behind her when they walked in, and she couldn’t take her eyes off Ejaz. They went on some dates and fell deeply in love and eventually got married. They had a quick ceremony, but Ejaz confessed that it didn’t feel right, so they went to the mosque for a traditional Islamic wedding. They were so happy, but unfortunately, many people began questioning Bonnie about their marriage and religious beliefs. Filling her head with myths and making her fearful. They were only four months into their marriage, and she was falling into a depression. Instead of talking things through, she filed for a divorce and a friend told her to cite, “cruel and unusual circumstances or abandonment” to hasten the divorce proceedings, so that’s what she did.  

 

Ejaz was devastated and Bonnie was too. They talked about things and eventually decided to get remarried. Bonnie had a son named Drake from a previous relationship and Ejaz adored him. After they got remarried, they decided to move in with Bonnie’s mother, Ernestine. Sure, it would help them out financially, but also, Ejaz wanted to take care of her. In his culture, people respect and care for their elders and he didn’t want her living alone. Bonnie was really close to her mother, so she was happy about this arrangement. The two of them loved learning about the differences in their cultures and introduced each other to new things. 

 

Like any marriage, they had their issues. Ejaz was a bit too clingy and always wanted to be with Bonnie and she liked her space. Ejaz eventually went into business with a friend, and they started a fish market, then he opened up his own store, Regal Imports, in a small shop in the mall. His store had Pakistani furniture, pictures, lamps, furnishings, and ornate swords. In August of 1991, the couple had their son, Jordan. When he was six years old, he got to accompany his father on a trip to Pakistan to meet his family. Jordan said, “It taught me that family is important. Even if they are thousands of miles away.”  

 

Ejaz kept a black backpack and when anyone asked, he always said it had very important papers. Friends assumed that it probably had Jordan’s information, such as medical records, but a close family member believed he kept a large amount of cash in it. Later, attorneys said it had his immigration registration and other legal documents. This bag would play a big role in this story, but we’ll get to that later. 

 

Though Ejaz and Bonnie were great together, they did have one big problem. Bonnie didn’t want to convert to the Muslim religion. At first, it was something they would often discuss, but it turned into a bigger argument. Ejaz wanted to share that part of his life with her, and he wanted someone to worship with. She had no problem going to mosque with him, but she was a Christian. She respected his beliefs, but that’s not how she identified. Bonnie filed for divorce for the second time, and this was after they had been together for 7 years. She followed her friend’s advice and filed on the grounds of desertion. She wanted to speed up the proceedings and make sure she got custody of Jordan. 

 

Bonnie believed that this meant she automatically got full custody, but she later admitted that she was young and stupid. She told the courts that Ejaz never did anything to hurt her. He was in Pakistan when she filed for divorce, and he was served when he arrived home. They split custody of Jordan, but Ejaz kept trying to get Bonnie back, and she refused. The differences in religion would always be there. Ejaz moved in with some friends until he was able to buy his own home in Memphis. He prepared it for himself, Jordan, and Bonnie, just in case she returned to him. The two of them were able to remain good friends, but they didn’t rekindle their relationship. 

 

In fact, Bonnie was about to get remarried to Raymond Garrett. They had been teenage sweethearts and they got back together. Ejaz was very upset when he heard about this, and he showed up at Ernestine’s door to speak with her and Bonnie. He begged her not to marry Raymond and they got into an argument. He threatened to take her to court to get custody of Jordan and Bonnie called and filed assault charges, but he never hurt her. Bonnie and Raymond did get married and in the fourth year, she was no longer happy. Ejaz showed up at her workplace to surprise her with the news that he was going to Pakistan, and he wanted to say goodbye. He was the one that got a surprise though. Bonnie was crying and she told him her marriage was falling apart because Raymond was doing drugs. Ejaz asked her to get back with him, but she couldn’t. He asked her to at least promise that she would do what made her happy. 

 

When Ejaz arrived back in the states, he had hopes that he and Bonnie would get back together, but she told him she was staying in her marriage because she was pregnant. So, let’s talk about the woman that Ejaz had been living with after he knew things were finally over with Bonnie. Leah Ward was born into an upper middle-class family. Her mother obtained a college degree and her father, a former military man, worked in a local factory. Leah’s family had a history of substance abuse and mental illness. Leah’s attitude changed when she was in fifth grade, and she started talking back to her teachers. Her behavior was immature, but she was maturing physically rather quickly. Leah was getting the attention of boys that were older than her. Teachers started picking up notes where Leah had been writing her sexual intentions to other kids. At 13, she started keeping a journal about her sexual activities, she would detail who it was with and what they did. Her grades went from A’s and B’s to D’s and F’s. She started getting into fights at school because other girls were calling her a slut and her brother started hearing all the rumors about her too. 

 

Leah started acting out against authorities, got in an argument with the assistant principal, and was written up for the infraction. Her parents decided it was time to move, so they went to a small town in Tennessee. They wanted a safe area for the kids, but Leah got into more trouble. At first, she would sneak out at night, then she started drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana. Her parents admitted her into local private hospitals due to her abusive behavior and substance abuse. Every time she was released, things would be fine at first, but she’d fall right back into her old ways. The police developed a “relationship” with the family because they were called to the house so often. 

 

On one occasion, Leah told her parents she had been raped by a 20-year-old black male. Charges were filed when the accused person was in jail serving time for robbery. In March 1991, the family received a call from the police, and they said they had responded to a call regarding a car accident. When they arrived, a woman was nervously standing beside a 1989 Cadillac. She said she was taking the car on a test drive and a juvenile driver smashed into her. Can you guess who the juvenile driver was? 14-year-old Leah said she was running away from home, and she had taken her grandmother’s car. 

 

Besides the stolen vehicle, she was also in possession of three blank stolen checks with her mother’s name. Her family soon found out that Leah had cashed a fourth check for $300. When she appeared in court, the judge ordered her to pay both the cost of towing the Cadillac, repairs, and the court costs, for a total of $400. Two months later, she was caught skipping school to meet up with a man at her home. The Department of Human Services was called in July 1991 when Leah reported that her father was abusing her. She showed them bruises on her legs and she said he beat her with a switch.  

 

She reported that her father pushed, hit, and slapped her, and he shoved her into walls. Leah also said she had shoved her mother out of anger. The family was ordered to attend counseling and Leah was admitted into Lakeside Hospital a few weeks later and she was deemed a danger to herself and others. She was released with a treatment plan where she was required to be seen twice as an outpatient at the Lakeside Outreach Office in Jackson, Tennesse. They referred her to Quinco Mental Health Center. Quinco reported Leah, “did not respond to therapy. She described the family sessions as only making matters worse.” Her family was at an absolute loss and didn’t know how to help her. One day, Leah and her father got into a yelling match, and she stole her brother’s truck and took off. She wrecked the truck and a house trailer that was in transit. She continued breaking curfew, didn’t follow any rules, and she stopped taking birth control as a way to get back at her parents. Her parents filed an “unruly and runaway” petition and she was 14 when she was admitted for an evaluation into the Timber Springs Adolescent Center located in Bolivar (Ball-ih-ver), Tennessee. 

 

The intake specialist asked her why she thought she was there, and she said, “Because of my father.” They did a series of tests, and she was diagnosed with an adjustment disorder. The doctors explained that this was a stress related mental illness that was caused by life changes and a person’s inability to cope and adjust to those changes. This can result in serious consequences, including the following: 

-Feelings of being overwhelmed 

-Reckless decisions 

-Anxiety 

-Depression 

-Potential suicidal thoughts 

Leah was prescribed mood stabilizers and mandated to attend individual and group psychotherapy. The social worker said she did well in the therapy sessions, and she appeared to be happy and cheerful. She was discharged from the Timber Springs Adolescent Center in October 1991, and she was sent to the Mercy Ministry Group Home in Monroe, Louisiana. She stayed in this program for 6 months. She participated in therapy, followed rules, and she seemed to work through some of her issues. 

 

When Leah was sent home in May, she appeared to be doing much better, but it didn’t last long. She started having temper tantrums and sneaking out again. One of her parents said it was a relief that she stopped stealing cars though. Her parents said she seemed to be possessed. She could be sweet as pie one moment, then angry and violent the next. Her mother told the police it was as if she had the strength of five or more people, then she would beg for forgiveness after her tantrums. 

 

In October 1993, Leah physically assaulted her mom and slammed her into the wall. When she was 17, things escalated at school. One of her friends had a boyfriend named Victor that Leah was arguing with, and he shoved her to the floor. She went down the hall and came back with a knife. She went after Victor and they got into a fight, but the knife was yanked out of her hand and Victor was fine. Leah swore she wasn’t going to kill him. She was escorted to juvenile court, and they asked why she did it. She said, “The motherfucker made me look stupid. He was going to apologize for it!” She was expelled from school and sent back to the hospital. She was prescribed Prozac and the assessment said, “Patient has a history of oppositional/defiant behavior...she demonstrates a great deal of impulsivity in her behavior. She seems to have little respect for authority or rules and regulations of society. Patient seems to feel, at this point and time, that she should be allowed to do as she pleases.” 

 

She did a personality test, to include the House-Tree-Person Drawing Test (HTP) and the Million Adolescent Personality Invetory (MAPI). Her drawings indicated that she had the following problems: 

-Impulsiveness 

-Aggression 

-Self-depreciation 

-Low Self esteem 

-Denial of problems 

The MAPI results indicated the following: 

-Histrionic (his-tree-on-ic) and aggressive behavior (histrionic is a mental health condition marked by unstable emotions, a distorted self-image and a desire to be noticed.) 

-Low level of empathy for others 

-Self-defeating behaviors and feelings of being misunderstood and unappreciated 

-Impulsive and volatile displays of anger caused by intense conflict between the need for dependency and self-autonomy (autonomy is the ability to feel in control of your behavior and destiny.  It’s self-regulation of one’s own behavior.) 

-Restless, erratic, and highly offended by trifles (Not to be confused with the holiday dessert.  This one was hard to find, but I believe this is an expression of resentment to a social pattern or feelings of oppression.) 

-Unhappy with her physical appearance 

 

Leah was diagnosed with a Conduct Disorder “Solitary Aggressive Type” with an alcohol and drug abuse problem. She had a developmental reading disorder and features of a borderline personality disorder. The Axis IV (4) Severity of Psychosocial Stressors was at a level 4, which is considered severe. Her triggers were listed as the legal charges against her, the unsuccessful hospitalization, and the conflict with her parents. After the evaluations, the doctors recommended the following: 

“Leah needs a long-term alcohol and drug abuse treatment in a secure, structural inpatient facility, where she can also receive counseling with a focus on anger management and improvement of prosocial behaviors.” As soon as she was released, she stopped her medication. Her family couldn’t figure out what to do, or how to help her anymore, but that was about to become someone else’s issue because.....she got married. 

 

NEXT WEEK: 

Leah got married and they had some kids together 

She started using drugs, her marriage fell apart, and she did a little time in prison 

When she got out, she needed a place to stay.  She met Ejaz Ahmad, and they got married. 

Ejaz told some friends that he was ready to break up with Leah and he wanted her to move out.  He went missing shortly after this. 

 

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