Troubled father confesses to killing his 5 children
PINE APPLE, Ala. — Their little bodies shrouded in plastic bags, the five children of Timothy Ray Jones Jr. had been dead for days by the time he led investigators to the spot where they had been dumped among dead trees and scrub brush.
The children’s journey to that isolated hilltop in central Alabama covered hundreds of miles and crisscrossed several Southeastern states as Jones drove his Cadillac Escalade around for days, using bleach to try to mask the smell of the decomposing bodies, authorities said Wednesday.
Jones was arrested Saturday at a DUI checkpoint in Mississippi, about 500 miles from his hometown of Lexington, S.C. An officer said he “smelled the stench of death” along with chemicals used to make methamphetamine and synthetic marijuana. Jones was acting strangely and appeared “somewhat disoriented,” said Lewis McCarty, the acting sheriff in Lexington.
Court documents show the children’s brief lives were troubled, marred for years by discord between their parents. The divorce between Jones and his wife, Amber, finalized 11 months ago, included multiple allegations of adultery against the woman and resulted in the children bouncing back and forth between their home in South Carolina and northeastern Mississippi, where Jones’ family lives.
A therapist who saw the man more than two years ago described him as “highly intelligent” and responsible, yet emotionally devastated and angry over his wife’s alleged infidelity, court records show. Still, authorities said they don’t know why the children were slain, or how, or exactly when. Autopsies were scheduled to begin Thursday.
Jones, 32, confessed to killing his children, ages 1 to 8, and dumping their bodies in the secluded clearing, authorities said. The computer engineer who had a degree from Mississippi State University was working for Intel when he disappeared with his children, the company said. At the time of his divorce, he was making about $71,000 a year.
The sheriff said Jones apparently acted alone and will be charged with five counts of murder. Authorities have seized his computer.
Jones’ father made a brief statement, but directed questions to attorney Boyd Young, who would represent his son. Young’s office in South Carolina refused to confirm that it is representing Jones and declined to comment.
Authorities believe the children were killed at the same time, likely soon after they were last seen alive in late August.