Newly released court documents reveal for the first time how Kansas mothers Veronica Butler and Jilian Kelley, both of whom were found dead in a freezer chest weeks after going missing, were killed.
Tad Cullum, Tiffany Adams, Paul Grice and Cole and Cora Twombly have all been arrested and charged in connection with the women’s deaths.
Kelley and Butler were last seen alive on March 30 while traveling through the Oklahoma panhandle. They were driving from Hugoton, Kansas to Texas County at the time so Butler could pick up her two children for a birthday party. Because of an intense and ongoing custody battle involving the children’s grandmother, Butler was required to bring a court-approved observer to supervise the visit, which is why Kelley had been with her.
According to court documents obtained by KSN, the Twomblys served as lookouts while Grice fatally stabbed Butler — cutting his hand badly in the process — and Cullum stabbed Kelley. The women’s bodies were then placed in a freezer chest and driven to a a rural cow pasture in Texas County. The day prior, Cullum got permission from a landowner to dig a hole on the property, where the group later buried the freezer.
Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation via AP
This combination of booking photo provided by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation shows Tad Bert Cullum, top left, Cora Twombly, top right, Tifany Machel Adams, bottom left, and Cole Earl Twombly, bottom right. On Saturday, April 13, 2024, Oklahoma authorities said they arrested and charged these four people with murder and kidnapping over the weekend in connection with the disappearances of Veronica Butler and Jilian Kelley. (Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation via AP)
Authorities eventually located the container on April 14. In addition to the bodies of both women, police found Cullum’s clothing, which were covered with his and Kelley’s DNA inside the freezer. Officers also found the clothing Grice was wearing when he killed Butler, a stun device, and the murder weapon in the grave, according to the court documents.
Adams is accused of purchasing burner phones used by the suspects as well as the stun device found at the burial site and the yellow straps they wrapped around the freezer to keep it closed. Her son is reportedly the father of Butler’s children, and she’d been battling for custody of them while he served a stint in rehab.
All five suspects face two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping and one count of conspiracy to commit murder in the case.
According to an arrest affidavit, Grice admitted his role in the killings to authorities while the Twomblys confessed to their teen daughter with the hopes that she’d provide them an alibi. In an interview with investigators, the 16-year-old said her parents told her they would “not have to worry about” Butler anymore. They also told her the group’s original plan had been to “throw an anvil through Butler’s windshield while driving, making it look like an accident because anvils regularly fall off work vehicles,” according to court documents.
Authorities have said all five suspects belong to an anti-government group with a religious affiliation called “God’s Misfits.” A witness told the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation that they held regular meetings at the home of the Twomblys and another couple.
With News Wire Services
