Father charged in deaths of children

December 09, 2010|Associated Press

VANCLEAVE, Miss. — An Alabama man who told authorities he dumped his two dead children in the woods, then covered them with twigs, has been charged with murder now that investigators have found remains believed to be his 3-year-old son, police said yesterday.

Mobile Police Officer Chris Levy said the discovery of a boy’s bones about 50 feet off a highway in rural Mississippi gives authorities enough evidence to file two murder charges against John DeBlase. Levy said authorities are convinced the remains found yesterday morning are those of Chase DeBlase, but they will conduct tests to confirm the identity.

Levy told the Associated Press that prosecutors gave police approval to prepare the charges after the bones were found in woods near Vancleave.

“We believe at this point that he did in fact kill his son’’ and daughter, Levy said.

John DeBlase and the children’s stepmother were arrested last week on lesser charges, and authorities searched for the children’s remains in Alabama and Mississippi over the weekend. Neither child had been seen for months, but an investigation into their disappearance didn’t start until November after authorities received a tip.

DeBlase, 27, is held on charges of child abuse and corpse abuse, and he has been assisting police in the search for the bodies. Remains of his 5-year-old daughter Natalie haven’t yet been located, but DeBlase told police he dumped her body in the woods north of Mobile in June. He told investigators he dumped the boy’s body in March.

“Everything we found is absolutely consistent with the information he gave to us on what to look for,’’ Levy said.