Lexington County, SC (WLTX) - The Lexington County man charged with killing his five children will face the death penalty when he goes to trial, prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Eleventh Circuit Solicitor Donnie Myers said he will seek the death penalty against Timothy Ray Jones Jr., 34, who's facing five counts of murder in the death of his children: Abigail Elizabeth Jones, 1; Gabriel Jones, 2; Nahtahn Jones, 6; Elias Jones, 7; and Mera Gracie Jones, 8.
Arrest warrants released last year stated that Jones killed the children "using violent means" in their home just south of the town of Lexington in late August of 2014. Detectives believe the children were killed up to a week before they were reported missing by their mother on September 3rd.
Deputies say he then traveled to Alabama where he dumped their bodies in garbage bags in a rural area near the town of Camden. He then continued on to Mississippi, where he was arrested on September 5 during a field sobriety traffic checkpoint.
Deputies in Smith County, Mississippi say he confessed to the crime, then led officers to the children's bodies.
A motive had not been released in the crime. However, a warrant released by investigators about an incident that took place hours before the killing outside a business say he made a statement that he feared the children were going to "kill him, chop him up, and feed him to the dogs."
Jones' attorneys told reporters initially that they believed he suffered from mental health issues. A gag order has since been put in place for law enforcement and attorneys in the case.
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