Kansas man to face charges related to killing sons, kidnapping daughters

Authorities in Kansas and two other states canceled an Amber Alert Saturday for two girls who were reported missing from a Leavenworth home where two boys were found dead. The girls were found safe after being abducted by their father, who was detained by police.

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Update 1:35 p.m. EDT Oct. 26: Two days after Donny Jackson, 40, was detained by Oklahoma authorities for the abduction of his two daughters, he remains in jail in Oklahoma, according to the Leavenworth County Undersheriff.

The undersheriff said Jackson will likely make his first court appearance in Oklahoma Monday. It is unclear when he will be extradited to Kansas, where he is expected to face charges related to the killing of the two boys, identified as his sons, and the abduction of the girls, KMBC reported. No official charges have been filed yet.

More details related to the case reveal that officials with the Kansas Highway Patrol made an unrelated car stop on Jackson’s car Saturday afternoon before they were alerted that the vehicle was the subject of an Amber Alert, according to KMBC. Maj. Jim Sherley, of Leavenworth County Sheriff’s Office, said the initial situation was a “basic traffic stop.”

According to authorities, a family member discovered the bodies of the two boys, ages 11 and 14, after visiting the home to see why one of the children had not showed up for a soccer game, KETV reported. The family member also discovered the two girls were missing.

Court records show Jackson filed for divorce from his wife and the children’s mother, Tara Jackson, last year, KSHB reported. A court hearing for the divorce was scheduled for Nov. 12.

The Leavenworth County Undersheriff said family members plan to pick the girls up from Oklahoma and return to Kansas, KETV reported.

Update 8:30 p.m. EDT Oct. 24: Oklahoma Highway Patrol officials have detained the father of two girls authorities said he abducted Saturday, triggering a three-state search for the children. According to KSHB, Jackson was taken into custody near Erick, Oklahoma. Seven-year-old Nora Jackson and 3-year-old Aven Jackson were found safe, troopers said.

Police were looking for Jackson and the two girls after receiving a 911 call at 1:16 p.m. CDT from an adult at a home in Leavenworth, Kansas. The call led deputies to discover a homicide scene with two dead juvenile males inside the home and the girls missing.

Original report: According to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, 7-year-old Nora Jackson and 3-year-old Aven Jackson were missing from the home, The Kansas City Star reported. Investigators said they believed the girls’ father, Donny Jackson, 40, abducted them, the newspaper reported.

Alerts have also been issued by the Missouri State Highway Patrol and by the Arkansas State Police.

The National Amber Alert website noted that the Leavenworth Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call, which led deputies to discover the two juvenile males inside the house, WIBW reported. it is unclear when the boys were killed, KSHB reported. They are believed to be between the ages of 11 and 14, Leavenworth County Sheriff’s Office Undersheriff Jim Sherley told reporters.

Authorities said Donny Jackson is driving a Honda Accord with Kansas license plate 266MXB, the Star reported. Both girls are slender with blonde, shoulder-length hair.

Around 4:30 p.m., law enforcement learned that the Kansas Highway Patrol made an “unrelated car stop” on Donny Jackson’s vehicle near the Oklahoma border around 12:35 p.m. Saturday, KSHB reported. The two girls were in the vehicle, according to police. The stop was made just before the children were reported missing, the television station reported.

Police believe Donny Jackson might be traveling to Oklahoma, Texas or Arkansas.

If you have seen a missing child, suspect or the suspect’s vehicle, or have other information on a missing child, call 911 or 1-800-KS-CRIME.

Cox Media Group