18 January 2023 :
Michael Wayne Jones, 41, White, sentenced to death
An Ocala County jury on January 12 unanimously recommended that Michael Wayne Jones, the man who admitted killing his wife and 4 children in 2019, should be sentenced to death.
State law requires unanimous jury recommendations for death sentences. Circuit Judge Anthony Tatti will factor the recommendation when he imposes sentence at a later date.
Jones was detained in Georgia after he was involved in a single-vehicle crash in September 2019. He told law enforcement officials that his wife's remains were in the vehicle. The victim's remains were in a tote, authorities said. Jones was interviewed by law enforcement officials. He took them to where he left the children's remains.
The remains were in a wooded area, officials said, stuffed inside a suitcase and sealed totes. He said he killed each child at different days and times by strangling or drowning them.
Authorities believe the murders occurred between July 10 and the end of August 2019.
In November, Jones pleaded guilty to 1st-degree murder in the deaths of Cameron Bowers, 9; his brother, Preston Bowers, 4; and sisters Mercalli Jones, 2; and 11-month-old Aiyana Jones. He knew he could face the death penalty for those charges.
At the same hearing, he pleaded guilty to 1 count of 2nd-degree murder in the death of his wife, Casei. The girls belonged to the couple, while the boys were from Casei Jones' previous marriage.
