Featured (left to right): Ronnell Marquese Jones and Kirstie Dora (St. Francois County Sheriff’s Department). Behind: News footage revealing the location in Stookey Township, Ill., where a child’s remains were discovered (KMOV).
Authorities in Missouri have detained a man following the unsettling discovery of a child’s remains in a neighboring state.
Ronnell Marquese Jones, 32, along with Kirstie Dora, 35, faced arrest and were charged with parental kidnapping and harassment. This situation unfolded during an investigation concerning a missing young boy. Evidence, including court documents examined by Law&Crime, indicates that Jones, the boy’s biological father, has allegedly prevented the child’s mother from seeing him since April 2024. That year, the mother officially reported her son’s disappearance.
In her account to the Desloge Police Department, the mother recounted the last occasion she saw her son. He was inside Jones’ vehicle, notably with missing teeth, before Jones purportedly left the state with him.
Through the course of the investigation, police reported Jones provided varying accounts regarding his son’s whereabouts. At one point, he claimed the child was under state custody, while another time, he alleged to have dropped the boy off at an Amish community in Mississippi, where he purportedly “visits him.” Law enforcement has noted Jones’ consistent refusal to cooperate with their efforts.
Witnesses told police that they had reason to believe the boy was dead.
A warrant was issued for Jones’ arrest on suspicion of parental kidnapping and harassment on June 12. He was arrested on June 30; Dora was arrested on the same charges on July 2. Details about the relationship between the two defendants were not provided by police.
Jones was scheduled for a bond hearing, but Desloge police announced Thursday that a child’s remains were found in Stookey Township, Illinois, located about 16 miles away from St. Louis, Missouri, where both defendants live. The child has not been identified, but Desloge police said the find was in connection with Jones’ parental kidnapping case.
Court documents for Jones’ case stated that “in light of new information,” he should be held without bond. Dora is also being held without bond. Neither defendant has been charged in connection with the child’s death.
Both Jones and Dora are in custody at the St. Francois County Jail. Jones is scheduled to appear in court on July 16. Case information for Dora was not available.