Cause of death revealed for 2 moms found in freezer in cow pasture; 5 members of 'God's Misfits' group charged with murder



Two Kansas mothers were found dead inside a chest freezer in a cow pasture in rural Oklahoma in April.

Veronica Butler, 27, and Jilian Kelley, 39, went on a road trip to Oklahoma earlier this year. However, they went missing March 30 after driving to the Oklahoma panhandle to pick up Butler's children — ages 6 and 8. They didn't make it that far.

The group's initial plan was to 'throw an anvil through Butler's windshield while driving, making it look like an accident because anvils regularly fall off work vehicles.'

Authorities found their car abandoned near the Oklahoma-Kansas border.

Law enforcement suspected foul play after allegedly finding "evidence of a severe injury" and several puddles of blood near the abandoned vehicle in the desolate Oklahoma panhandle.

On April 13, investigators discovered Butler and Kelley's remains inside a chest freezer that had been buried in a cow pasture, according to affidavits. The freezer reportedly was inside a hole filled with dirt and concrete.

The Daily Mail reported that the mothers were found dead in "pools of blood" inside the freezer.

Investigators discovered that the farming property had ties to the grandmother of one of the women's children, court documents say.

The property owner told authorities that 43-year-old Tad Bert Cullum — who reportedly rented time on the cow pasture for cattle grazing — asked him on March 28 "if he could cut a tree down, remove a stump, [and] bury some concrete" in an area below the dam where a concrete pile had been sitting above ground. The property owner said Cullum completed the project in the next day or two.

Cullum was the boyfriend of 54-year-old Tifany Adams — the paternal grandmother of Butler's children.

Court records revealed that Adams' son — Wrangler Rickman — had been in a custody battle with Butler over their children. The couple also allegedly were going through a divorce. At the time, Rickman reportedly was in an Oklahoma rehabilitation center.

The Daily Mail reported that Butler had court-mandated, supervised visits every Saturday with her children, and Kelley was one of four people listed to supervise the visits.

The outlet added that Butler filed a petition in court March 20 that would grant her more time with her children, with her goal being receiving full custody.

“Adams hated and despised Butler and wanted her dead,” court documents said.

In April, Callum, Adams, 31-year-old Paul Grice, 44-year-old Cora Twombly, and 50-year-old Cole Twombly were arrested in connection with the deaths of the two mothers.

All five suspects are facing two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count of conspiracy to commit murder in the first degree.

The filing said Adams allegedly purchased three burner phones, stun devices, yellow straps found around the freezer, and the pants that Cullum wore and buried with the victims.

CNN reported that Cora Twombly told her 16-year-old daughter that she was going on a “mission" with Cole Twombly, the girl's stepfather. The teen said her mother and stepfather told her they would "not have to worry about [Butler] again," according to Fox News.

The group's initial plan was to "throw an anvil through Butler's windshield while driving, making it look like an accident because anvils regularly fall off work vehicles," Cora Twombly allegedly told her daughter.

'God’s Misfits is about spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, not about hate and murder.'

Citing court documents, KSNT-TV reported that the Twomblys "served as lookouts on the day of the murder."

Court documents accuse Grice of stabbing Butler to death while Cullum allegedly killed Kelley — the wife of a pastor.

Grice severely cut his hand in the process of killing Butler, the documents state.

Grice reportedly tossed a stun device and the murder weapon into the grave, along with the clothing he was wearing when he killed Butler. Investigators said the clothing recovered from the grave contained DNA evidence from Grice and Butler.

A preliminary autopsy report was released this week that revealed the cause of death of the two mothers.

The report from the Oklahoma Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said Butler and Kelley were killed from multiple sharp-force trauma, which could be caused by a knife, glass, or anything with a cutting edge.

The Oklahoma Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is expected to release the full report on Nov. 15.

The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation said the five suspects were members of a group called God’s Misfits — reportedly a self-proclaimed anti-government group with a religious affiliation.

In April, the supposed founder of God's Misfits distanced himself from the suspects.

“Someway, people think they are part of us. Nothing could be more wrong,” the founder posted on Facebook. “God’s Misfits is about spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, not about hate and murder.”

The preliminary hearings are scheduled to begin Dec. 17.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

'I want them to pay': 8-year-old boy shot in the head while looking at Christmas lights



An 8-year-old Oklahoma boy remains in the hospital after he was shot in the head while he was looking at Christmas lights with his family.

Nichole Groshong was making food deliveries for DoorDash around 8 p.m. on Dec. 10 in Lawton, Oklahoma — approximately 90 miles southwest of Oklahoma City. In the car with the mother were her two young sons and their grandmother. While making DoorDash deliveries, the family would also stop to look at Christmas lights in the neighborhood.

The mom put the car in reverse while looking at Christmas lights when suddenly gunshots rang out.

“It sounded like somebody was throwing fireworks at the car,” Groshong told KFOR-TV. “Their grandma was like, ‘They’re shooting at us, go, go, go.’ So I threw it in drive, and I started getting out of there.”

Zachariah Bannister was shot in the head while sitting in the backseat with his brother. The boy had just celebrated his eighth birthday just days before he was shot.

Groshong said, "[His brother] was like, 'Zack’s bleeding.' Then, his little head started falling over toward his shoulders. His brother said, ‘Zack, you can’t go to sleep. You can’t go to sleep.'"

"I drove away as fast as I could,” Groshong explained on a GoFundMe campaign. “My kids said they were okay, but Waylon then informed me that Zack was bleeding and he didn’t know from where so I drove as fast as I could to the hospital while my oldest kept his little brother awake all the way to the hospital and they said that was the best thing he could have done.”

Once at the hospital, doctors noted that Zachariah had suffered a fractured skull and had bleeding on the brain.

The young boy remains at a children's hospital and is in the ICU with a blood clot near his skull fracture.

"They said that the bleeding has stopped," Groshong said. "He can move his arms pretty well, but he gets tired easily."

The mother said she is "so proud" of her son.

"My son, he didn’t deserve it," the distraught mother said. "He is just like the sweetest little boy."

Meanwhile, police made an arrest in the tragic shooting.

The Lawton Police Department arrested 30-year-old Jullian Phillips in connection with the shooting of the 8-year-old boy.

Sgt. Christopher Blessing told Law&Crime that Phillips has no ties to the family and it appears to be a case of mistaken identity. The suspect is reportedly not cooperating with law enforcement.

On Monday, prosecutors charged Phillips with shooting with intent to kill. The shooting suspect remains in the Comanche County Detention Center on a $500,000 bond.

Phillips is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 22.

Speaking about the man accused of shooting her son, "I want them to pay for what they did to my kid."

Lawton 8-year-old boy shot in head while looking at Christmas lights with family www.youtube.com

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Following hours-long standoff, Oklahoma mother and her 3 children found dead in suspected murder-suicide



A mother and her three children were found dead in an Oklahoma home on Thursday following an hours-long standoff. The harrowing case is being investigated as a possible murder-suicide, according to police.

Around 4 p.m., police were notified of fireworks being fired from inside a house's garage in the small town of Verdigris, Oklahoma. Verdigris Police Chief Jack Shackleford said a Roman candle firework had been launched through a broken window and a woman and two children were locked in a garage at the house in the suburb east of Tulsa.

Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation spokesperson Hunter McKee said, "It was at that time that officer knew that there was something wrong, went to investigate, called for backup."

Tulsa World reported, "The officer discovered that a woman was trapped in the garage with some children and was using the Roman candle to try to attract attention to get help, Shackleford said."

The outlet added that a woman brought a child to the home for a supervised visitation, but the mother pointed a gun at the woman and took her child. The woman and two other children were locked in the garage, according to police.

Police were able to free the woman and the two children from the locked garage.

The armed mother barricaded herself and her three children in the house. A standoff began, and several agencies – including the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service's SWAT team – were called to the scene.

Shackleford said the police were familiar with the mother. Officers were dispatched to the home serval times in the past for domestic and mental health incidents, KOKI-TV reported.

Officers attempted to make contact with the armed mother during the hostage situation, McKee said.

After a three-hour standoff with no response from the mother, officers entered the home. McKee said once inside the home, officers "found an adult woman along with three children dead inside, all with apparent gunshot wounds."

The children ranged in age from a few months old to around 11 years old, according to reports.

Officers recovered a handgun at the crime scene.

Investigators are treating the case as a murder-suicide. The case is being handled by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

Authorities have yet to release the identities of the mother and slain children.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Woman and 3 children found dead in suspected Oklahoma murder-suicide www.youtube.com

Oklahoma gas station employee wanted to go home early, so he asked someone to rob him at work: Police



An Oklahoma gas station employee wanted to leave work early, so he asked someone to rob his store, according to police.

Police responded to a robbery at a gas station convenience store in Tulsa on June 5.

Isaias Jones, the store clerk, allegedly told police that a masked man walked into the convenience store and handed him a note that read: "Give me all your money or I will shoot you." Jones reportedly told police that he complied with the thief and handed over the money from the store's cash register.

Tulsa Police Department identified the alleged robber as Steven Jones – no relation to the gas station clerk. The suspect was arrested on June 8. He admitted that he had robbed the store, but he claimed that his friend had invited him to rob the store.

Alyia Locke, a mutual friend of both men, allegedly asked Jones to rob the gas station store at the behest of the gas station worker.

The Tulsa Police Department said in a statement, "She confessed to setting up the robbery. Locke also provided text messages from Isaias Jones asking for someone to rob the store so he could leave early."

The store clerk was arrested and reportedly told detectives that he asked "Locke to find someone to rob the store because he was tired and wanted to go home," police said.

Isaias Jones purportedly paid Locke after the crime was committed.

Isaias Jones was charged with embezzlement and conspiracy to commit a felony. Steven Jones was charged with conspiracy to commit embezzlement and possession of a firearm after a former conviction of a felony. Alyia Locke was arrested for an outstanding warrant and could also face charges of embezzlement.

The Tulsa Police Department quipped, "Our human resources department, and likely every H.R. department in the world would like to advise people that this is not the recommended way to leave work early."

Both men were reportedly released on bond, but Locke remains in the Tulsa County Jail.

Video: QuikTrip clerk asks friend to rob store so he could "go home early" www.youtube.com

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!