Alex Deaton pleaded guilty to murder, drive-by shooting and motor vehicle theft in Monday in Rankin County Court.

In March, 2017, Deaton was a fugitive wanted in connection with two murders and a string of shootings in Mississippi, a shooting, carjacking and kidnapping in New Mexico, and a carjacking and shooting in Kansas.

Deaton, 29, was charged with the murder his girlfriend, Heather Robinson, 30, the murder of Brenda Pinter, 69, found dead in a rural Neshoba County church, and aggravated assault after the shooting of a jogger in the Castlewoods neighborhood.

Investigators said it appeared Deaton went into a fit of rage after learning that Robinson was going to end their relationship. Investigators believe he killed her and followed her death with other senseless killings.

Deaton was taken into custody after a high speed chase ended in a crash on I-70 in Kansas. He’s already been convicted of attempted murder and armed robbery in Kansas.

Deaton’s crimes began in Rankin County, where police accused him in the strangulation death of Robinson, originally of Quitman. Deaton is also accused in a drive-by non-fatal shooting of a jogger on Feb. 24, 2017.

Neshoba County authorities identified Deaton as a suspect in the death of Pinter, who was discovered in the office of the Dixon Baptist Church on Feb. 23, 2017.

Legal proceedings may not be over for Deaton. He could face trial later this year on an indictment accusing him of shooting death of Pinter.

Deaton also faces a multicount indictment in New Mexico’s Sandoval County, accusing him of trying to kidnap two teenage hikers. Authorities say he shot and wounded one of them and stole a car.

Rankin County District Attorney Michael Guest said he believes Monday’s sentence will assure Deaton never goes free. That was the stated goal of Robinson’s relatives.

“This was not a case, based on the facts of it, that we could pursue the death penalty,” Guest told reporters after the sentencing.

Deaton on Monday told the judge he had been treated for bipolar disorder, but authorities say they’re still unsure what prompted the violence. Jessica Greene, Robinson’s sister, testified that her oldest child still asks why Deaton killed Robinson.

“He said he loved her. How could he do this to her?” Greene testified. “There are so many unanswered questions.”

Rankin County Sheriff Bryan Bailey said he believes the 30-year-old Robinson was trying to break up with Deaton.

“I think it was an abusive relationship, she was trying to break it off with him and I think that, in my opinion, made him go off the deep end,” Bailey told reporters.

Authorities declined to say why Deaton may have shot Pinter or whether they had any connection. Neshoba County District Attorney Steven Kilgore said Deaton may face trial in Philadelphia in November. But he said that since Deaton has already been sentenced to life, that may happen.

“There’s not a clear roadmap as to where we’re going at this point,” Kilgore said.

WLBT, The Associated Press and Whitney Downard contributed to this report.