‘Baby Bones’ Victim Identified, Three Charged In Cover Up
From the archive: published Oct 10, 2012, 14 years ago. Details may have changed since.
Bail has been set for three people charged with covering up the death of a New York City girl who was labeled by investigators as the “Baby Bones” victim. The abused girl was nine-year-old Jon-Niece Jones of Harlem who passed away after years of abuse from her mother.
The young girl’s remains were dumped in central New Jersey 10 years ago but were not discovered until 2005, reports ABC News .
The three people charged are Likisha Jones, 39, James Jones, 35, and Godfrey Gibson, 48. Likisha and James were the young girl’s aunt and uncle, while Gibson is Likisha’ boyfriend.
The investigation involving Jon-Niece’s remains became known as the Baby Bones case after the young girl’s burned skeletal remains were discovered in Upper Freehold Township.
The girl passed away in 2002 after years of abuse by her mother, who died of natural causes four months later, according to authorities.
The arrests came after a tip was received in the last two months that allowed authorities to identify the young girl’s remains. The investigation uncovered that the girl died at her Aunt Likisha’s home on August 15, 2002.
Yahoo! News notes that the mother, along with the three adults charged, reportedly disposed of the young girl’s body after they burned it. Colonel Rick Fuentes, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, stated:
“The family members of Jon-Niece Jones turned a blind eye to the constant physical and mental abuse this girl endured for years. Because of the hard work by investigators, these three suspects will now have to answer for their alleged unthinkable actions.”
The Baby Bones case received national attention in 2009 after investigators appeared on the TV show America’s Most Wanted to ask for help in solving the grisly case.