KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Leavenworth father was charged Tuesday for allegedly killing two boys who were found dead in his home over the weekend.
Donald Jackson Jr., 40, was charged with one count of capital murder in the deaths, Leavenworth County Attorney Todd Thompson announced during a news conference.
Jackson remains in custody in Beckham County, Oklahoma, where he was arrested over the weekend after allegedly abducting his two young daughters. Before Jackson was apprehended, police found their older brothers dead.
Jackson will eventually be extradited back to Kansas, Thompson said.
Thompson declined to say how the boys died or whether investigators knew of a motive. He also declined to confirm if the victims were Jackson's sons. He said he did not want to discuss the facts because he did not want to taint a potential jury.
Amber Alerts were issued in multiple states after family members found the boys — 11-year-old Austin Jackson and 14-year-old Logan Jackson — dead at Jackson's home at 14970 Hillside Road in rural Leavenworth.
In charging documents, prosecutors identified the victims as A.R.J. and L.W.J.
Their younger sisters, 7-year-old Nora Jackson and 3-year-old Aven Jackson, were missing when their brothers were found dead. Investigators said they believed Jackson abducted them, though he has not been charged with such a crime.
Thompson said his office was focused on the killings at the moment. Asked how the victims' family members were doing, he replied: "As well as you could expect."
Nearly six hours after the Amber Alerts went out Saturday, a black 2008 Honda Accord that matched the description of Jackson's car was seen in Beckham County, Oklahoma. As the sun set, officers pulled Jackson over near Erick, Oklahoma, about 500 miles southwest of Leavenworth.
"It was just the right place at the right time to be sitting there," the officer who pulled Jackson over told KFOR-TV.
Jackson appeared shocked he was stopped, the officer, Jonathan Burrow, told the television station. Burrow said he was just happy the girls were safe.
Thompson declined to comment when asked if he knew where Jackson was heading when he left Kansas.
"It's not to be rude," Thompson told reporters of releasing few details at the 12-minute news conference. "It's just for the best interest of the case overall and the ethics that we have as prosecutors."
Before the alleged abduction, Jackson and his wife had been in the middle of divorce proceedings.
In the days after the boys were found, people left a toy giraffe and a bouquet of red, yellow and purple flowers near the home, which sits along a dirt road. Snow has since covered personal items, including bicycles and a toy kitchen set, in the front lawn.
No one answered the door at the home Monday.
As of Tuesday, Jackson did not have an attorney listed in Kansas court records who could be reached for comment.
If Jackson is convicted of capital murder, he could be sentence to life in prison. Prosecutors could also seek the death penalty. Kansas, however, has not executed an inmate since 1965, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
Alternatively, if the case goes to trial, a jury could determine whether to convict Jackson of two counts of first-degree murder, Thompson said.
