LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (WDAF) — The discovery of the bodies of two boys led to an AMBER Alert in Kansas on Saturday before two abducted girls were found and the suspect was arrested in far western Oklahoma.
The girls were found near Erick, Oklahoma, and 40-year-old suspect Donny Jackson was arrested on Saturday evening. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation identified the girls as 3-year-old Aven Jackson and 7-year-old Nora Jackson. Donny Jackson is a person of interest in the homicides, though the Leavenworth County District Attorney hasn’t announced charges against anyone yet.
The girls are reportedly okay physically, the investigation is still in its early stages.
It began at about 1:15 p.m. Saturday when a family member called police to a house off of Hillside Road where the boys, ages 11 and 14, were found. Police say the boys were shot to death.
The AMBER Alert was then issued for the girls.
Police said that a Kansas state trooper stopped Donny Jackson before the alert went out when he was driving near the Kansas/Oklahoma border on 169 Highway.
“They made contact at the vehicle and that was prior to law enforcement being alerted to the incident that had transpired during the day,” Leavenworth County Sheriff Major Jim Sherley said.
Several agencies, including the U.S. Marshals and Kansas Bureau of Investigation, assisted in the efforts to find the girls and suspect.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said at about 7 p.m., a truck driver spotted Donny Jackson’s car on an interstate. Police arrested him and rescued the girls. He’s currently in custody of the Beckham County Sheriff’s Office, about seven hours away from where the investigation began.
Someone who knows the two boys told NewsNation affiliate KDFW they loved playing video games and hanging out with friends. The Leavenworth County Sheriff’s Office said the family became suspicious when one of the children didn’t show up for a soccer game.
“There had been some back and forth with other family members and I believe there was a family event, a soccer game, that one of the children was supposed to be at. He didn’t show up, so a family member had shown up then, and had discovered the crime here at the scene,” Major Sherley said.
This story is developing. Check back for updates.
