Timothy Burns
Cedric Mason
Timothy Lydell Burns: Suspect leads investigators to bodies of missing family
A Jackson man has been arrested in connection with the deaths of a 7-year-old boy, his mother and stepfather after their bodies were found.
Jaidon Hill, 7, Atira Hill, 30, and Laterry Smith, 34, had been missing since Friday. They were last seen traveling in their vehicle, which was found crashed and burning Saturday morning on Shelby Road off Highway 18 in Copiah County, authorities said.
The investigation led the Misssippi Bureau of Investigation and the Copiah County Sheriff's Department to Timothy Burns, 42, who was arrested in Jackson Tuesday, Sheriff Harold Jones said. Burns led investigators to the bodies, which were found in an old house not far from where the car was found, he said. All three had been shot, Jones said.
Jones said investigators believe the family was killed before Saturday's crash and their bodies were dumped at the house. He said the fire was set in an effort to destroy evidence.
"Was this area not searched, or did (you) not think they would be in this area? It's so close to the crash site," 16 WAPT's Andrew Kinsey asked Jones.
"It was close to the crash site, but that showed that the car was coming this way," Jones said. "When you have a car that is overturned and no one is in there, we have no clue of where to go."
Jones did not provide a motive and couldn't say if there was a connection between Burns and the family.
"The sad part is, we have a young child that has lost his life and he is not going to be able to grow up and be the person he should have been, and that's sad," Jones said.
Family members spoke to 16 WAPT's Scott Simmons early Tuesday morning at the Brandon home where Jaidon Hill lived with his grandmother. The family hugged and cried and looked at pictures of Atira, Laterry and Jaidon, who went to school with Simmons' son, Evan.
"We thought we were ready, but when this came, this just hit like a ton of bricks," said Jaidon Hill's great-grandfather Sidney Kersh.
The discovery of the bodies comes a day after investigators recovered items linked to the family -- including bloody clothes and Atira Hill's ID badge from her job at the University of Mississippi Medical Center -- in a dumpster at a south Jackson gas station.
Monday night, friends and family members gathered in Brandon for a prayer vigil for the missing family.
"We realized last night how many friends that we did have, and that can be so much help," Kersh said.
Another family member, Antionetta Taylor, said she has a lot of questions and needs some answers.
"I mean, the bottom line is, Jaidon was an innocent child and you just could have let him go," Taylor said.
A prayer vigil is set for 6 p.m. Tuesday at Stonebridge Elementary School in Brandon, where Jaidon Hill was in 2nd grade.
"During Jaidon's time as a student in the Rankin County School District, his short life had a dramatic impact on the individuals around him. As one of his administrators said this morning, there was never a time that Jaidon did not have a huge smile on his face. We are praying for the family and friends as they struggle through this difficult time," said RCSD Superintendent Dr. Lynn Weathersby.
Burns is facing murder and arson charges, Jones said.
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