Mother sues South Carolina for granting custody of her five young children to her ex-husband who then 'strangled and beat them to death before dumping them in a ditch'

  • Timothy Ray Jones Jr allegedly murdered his five young children in 2013
  • Abigail, Gabriel, Nahtahn, Elias & Merah Jones, aged 1 to 8, were all killed
  • They were strangled and beaten to death and found dumped in a field 
  • Jones allegedly drove for nine days with their bodies in the back of his SUV
  • Children's mother is now suing state for granting custody of kids to Jones 
  • She claims they had three years of warnings that he was abusing them
  • Jones, 33, is charged with five counts of murder and is awaiting trial, with prosecutors seeking the death penalty

Timothy Ray Jones Jr, 33, is accused of strangling and beating his five children to death and dumping their bodies in a ditch

Timothy Ray Jones Jr, 33, is accused of strangling and beating his five children to death and dumping their bodies in a ditch

The mother of five young children who were strangled and beaten to death is suing the state of South Carolina for granting custody to her ex-husband, who is accused of murdering them.

Timothy Ray Jones Jr, 33, allegedly killed his five children at their home in Lexington County in August 2014 before driving for nine days with their bodies in trash bags in the back of his SUV.

Amber Jones, the children's mother, said the authorities failed to take action despite three years of complaints about the children's care, with allegations of abuse escalating in the months before their deaths.

After travelling for 700 miles, Timothy Jones allegedly dumped his five children's bodies in a ditch in a field in Alabama.

He was arrested in Mississippi after a deputy smelled the stench of death coming from Jones' vehicle. 

Police then found 'a large amount of blood and handwritten notes with directions to kill and mutilate bodies' in the vehicle, as well as 'a significant amount of bleach products along with the blood'.

Jones was reported to have admitted killing one-year-old Abigail Elizabeth, two-year-old Gabriel , six-year-old Nahtahn, seven-year-old Elias and eight-year-old Merah Gracie.

According to their autopsies, Nahtahn was beaten to death while the others were strangled. 

While the motive for the murders is not known, Jones reportedly made statements before the killings, saying that he feared the children were going to 'kill him, chop him up, and feed him to the dogs'.

Ms Jones, 31, is now suing the South Carolina Department of Social Services (DSS), branding it 'grossly negligent' for granting custody of the children to her ex-husband, the Daily Beast reported.

In her lawsuit, she says the DSS 'failed to provide the statutorily mandated protection that would have saved [her children] from abuse and neglect and prevented their deaths'.

Abigail Elizabeth Jones, one
Gabriel Jones, two

Jones allegedly killed one-year-old Abigail Elizabeth Jones (left) and two-year-old Gabriel Jones (right)

Six-year-old Nahtahn Jones
Seven-year-old Elias Jones

Nahtahn Jones (left) and Elias Jones (right), six and seven years old, were also found dead in Alabama

Eight-year-old Merah Gracie Jones, the eldest of five siblings, was also killed in the horrific murders in 2014

Eight-year-old Merah Gracie Jones, the eldest of five siblings, was also killed in the horrific murders in 2014

Ms Jones claims the agency did not properly investigate allegations of abuse made by herself, teachers, neighbors and babysitters. 

She adds in the legal documents that even when the abuse was noticed by officials, they did not consider removing the children from their father's care. 

The DSS first visited the Joneses in 2011 and continued to do so through 2012 after the accused became violent and threatened to shoot a neighbor's dog, according to the suit.

Complaints were also made because the children were unclean, while trash and power tools were dumped all over the property, Ms Jones claims.

Ms Jones said her then-husband threatened to break her neck in front of their children and mentioned shooting their neighbors, according to the lawsuit.

Jones was granted custody of the five children two years before he allegedly murdered them

Jones was granted custody of the five children two years before he allegedly murdered them

She also claims that he 'played chicken' with another car while she and their children were in the vehicle and alleged that he spat in her face and head-butted her afterwards.

Ms Jones claims she informed the police and the DSS about the incident at the time.

The Joneses marriage fell apart in June 2012 after he found out she was having an affair with their neighbors' 19-year-old son.

The DSS landed on the father's side of the custody battle after he argued he was in a better position to care for the children than Ms Jones because of her 'lifestyle', according to divorce records seen by the Daily Beast.

But, according to the lawsuit, the abuse continued and Jones was reported to the DSS again in April 2014 after a large bruise was found on one his daughters.

The girl told her teacher she had been 'pulled around the house as punishment', but no action was taken by the authorities.

Just a month later, one of the children was found to have bruises on their neck and jaw after they were thrown against a wall, while another said their groin hurt, according to the Daily Beast.

It was also reported that the children were forced to do push-ups and other exercises as punishment for misbehavior, while they also received spankings and were beaten with a belt. 

Jones was said to have told the DSS that his child 'was very clumsy and bruised easily'.

More complaints came throughout the summer from a teacher and a babysitter, leading the agency to investigate Jones once again.

He was reportedly found to have not been feeding his children properly and their dinner one night was 20 chicken nuggets to share between them.

Two months later, the five children were dead.

The DSS did not comment.

Jones is being tried on five counts of murder and prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. 

 

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