Cola Beale to be sentenced for murder of girlfriend and her adoptive father

NORFOLK, Va. — Cola Beale will be sentenced Tuesday in Virginia Beach for the murder of his girlfriend and adoptive father.

Beale was convicted of the murders on March 20 after a two-day jury trial. He admitted to the killings during a police interrogation and a jailhouse interview with News 3.

As the court discussed the sentencing date, Beale said in the courtroom: “Can you get this sh-t over with, brother?”

Video: Jury finds Cola Beale guilty on all counts in Virginia Beach

Jury finds Cola Beale guilty on all counts in Virginia Beach

In March 2022, Beale shot his girlfriend, Czavi'er Hill, 31, in the head inside her Virginia Beach home, prosecutors said.

Two days after killing Hill, Beale returned to the house and set it on fire, prosecutors said. Hill's dog burned alive while it was locked in a kennel, prosecutors added.

Beale said he tied Hill up in his bedroom and was going to leave her there until he got his dog, covered him in bleach and got a lighter.

“I pulled her dog into the room and I was going to set the dog on fire, and she said, 'No, don't do anything to the dog. You can take me and do to me what you were going to do to the dog instead,' and that's what I did,” Beale told News 3.

Beale was arrested on March 30. Shortly after his arrest, he told News 3 that he “snapped” and shot his daughter Hill in the head because her parents “kept confronting him about his plans” with their daughter.

Prosecutors said Beale also shot and killed his adoptive father, 73-year-old Clifton Baxter, as he slept on the couch inside his home. The exact date of Baxter's death is unknown, but prosecutors said he was killed sometime between Hill's murder on March 22 and the morning of March 25. Beale's cousin was with him at the time of the killing.

Video: Cola Beale found guilty of third murder

Cola Beale found guilty of third murder

The jury convicted Beale of two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of arson, one count of kidnapping, two counts of using a firearm to commit murder and one count of maiming a dog.

Beale was also convicted of murdering his cousin, Downing McLean, 32. He also admitted to killing McLean during his jailhouse interview with us. He will be sentenced on charges related to his cousin's death, including first-degree murder, on Aug. 23 in Norfolk.

This article will be updated once Beale is sentenced today.