The father accused of murdering his five children has been identified as an ex-convict by authorities. In the course of the past three years, numerous social workers have been called to check on the family home.

In a news release issue late Thursday by Acting Lexington County Sheriff Lewis McCarty, Jones murdered his five children at home. With respect to the timeline of the killings, authorities believe that he murdered them approximately a week prior to ex-wife's filing of missing persons report. In the autopsies conducted by the Lexington County Coroner Earl Wells, the deaths of the five children were all ruled to be homicide. In describing the manner by which they were murdered, authorities described that Jones killed his own children "by violent means".  To date, the actual cause of their deaths is still under investigation.

Like Us on Facebook

"Arrest warrants allege that Jones willfully and maliciously killed his five children by violent means at his Lexington home, then loaded their bodies in trash bags into his Cadillac Escalade," McCarty stated. Records also disclosed that the father of five then drove around the Southeast for several days. The decomposing bodies of his five children remained with him in the car throughout that time.

In the reports of the Department of Social Services gathered from the social workers visiting the family home, the five children appeared to be well-adjusted and joyful. In fact, the family even went to Disney World and the beach during the summer holidays. Hence, the social workers noted that there was no indication of abuse or maltreatment serious enough to warrant taking the children away from their father. Nonetheless, the reports showed that Timothy Ray Jones, Jr. struggled to become a responsible single father of five.

The most recent visit from a social to the Jones' household occurred two weeks before the children were reported missing. In the August 13 report, the case worker, who chose to retain anonymity, described the condition of the home and the situation of the children. "Dad appears to be overwhelmed as he is unable to maintain the home, but the children appear to be clean, groomed and appropriately dressed," the social worker reported. 

The first court appearance of Jones, 32, is scheduled on Friday at 10 a.m. in Lexington. This will coincide with the Mississippi memorial service for his five children, where most of their other relatives reside.

TagsMurder, Father, five children, Lexington, killings