Father charged with murder after bodies of 5 missing South Carolina children found in Alabama

A South Carolina man will be charged with murder in the deaths of his five children – who were ages 1 to 8 – after their bodies were found wrapped in garbage bags off a two-lane highway in Alabama, authorities say.

Acting Sheriff Lewis McCarty of Lexington County said Wednesday at a news conference that Timothy Ray Jones Jr., 32, would be charged with five counts of murder when he arrives in South Carolina. Jones is currently being held in Mississippi.

Authorities in South Carolina and Mississippi said that Jones has already been charged with child neglect.

McCarty said authorities believe that Jones killed the five children at the same time, but he did not say specifically why he thought that. He said authorities are not sure of the motive for the killings, but officials believe Jones acted alone, with no one's help. More