In a somber development, authorities have discovered two bodies during the ongoing search for missing Kansas mothers Veronica Butler and Jillian Kelley. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) announced the discovery in a rural area of Texas County, Oklahoma. The women had been missing for several weeks, sparking a widespread search effort.
Veronica Butler and Jillian Kelley were last known to be traveling together from Hugoton, Kansas, to Eva, Oklahoma, to pick up Butler’s children from a birthday party. However, they never arrived at their destination, and their vehicle was later found abandoned on a rural highway near the Oklahoma-Kansas state line, raising immediate concerns about their whereabouts.
The OSBI, in collaboration with the FBI and the Texas County Sheriff’s Office, confirmed the recovery of the bodies on Sunday. “Both individuals will be transported to the Office of the Oklahoma Chief Medical Examiner to determine identification and cause and manner of death,” the OSBI stated on their social media platform X. The identities of the deceased have yet to be confirmed as Butler and Kelley.
The case took a grim turn with the arrest of four individuals now facing charges related to the disappearance of the two women. The suspects, identified as Tad Bert Cullum, 54, Tiffany Machel Adams, 54, Cole Earl Twombly, 50, and Cora Twombly, 44, were apprehended on Saturday. They are charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count of conspiracy to commit murder.
Among the arrested is Tiffany Machel Adams, the grandmother of Butler’s children, alongside her partner Tad Bert Cullum. Cole and Cora Twombly, who have been in a relationship for eight years and are known associates of Adams on social media, are also in custody.
This case has deeply affected the community, with a close friend of Butler expressing their distress: “It’s been really hard to deal with knowing that someone I’ve been in contact with since I was 16 years old is missing. It’s been really difficult.”
As the investigation continues, the local community and the families of the missing women await further details from the medical examiner’s office regarding the identification of the bodies and the cause of death. The tragic findings and subsequent arrests have brought both hope for closure and profound sorrow to all involved.
