Jerri Roby, 69, was sentenced to life behind bars on Thursday (July 23) after pleading guilty to first degree murder of 42-year-old John Allen Gaither in 2023
An evil mum has admitted murdering her son and hiding his body behind a fake wall for weeks while pretending to be him.
Monster Jerri Roby, 69, was sentenced to life behind bars on Thursday (July 23) after pleading guilty to first degree murder of 42-year-old John Allen Gaither ni 2023.
Police began looking into the incident in December 2023 when John’s brother reported him missing, claiming he had not heard from him in over a week.
At the time John lived with his mother, Roby, who told officers he had taken an Uber to go and buy a car a few hours away. She told cops in Mississippi that he told her he was going to Louisiana to view a new vehicle, but it later emerged he had never ordered an Uber.
John’s stepmother and brother then reached out to police again about a month later, claiming they had received a call and text messages from his number but they didn’t believe it was him.
Police obtained a search warrant for Roby’s home on January 18, 2024, and found a fake wall inside. They ripped it down and discovered a large box with John’s remains inside. Post mortem results showed he had died as a result of a gunshot wound to the head.
Roby was arrested admitted the killing – telling judges that she had shot her boy in the “spur of the moment” and put him “out of his misery” with his depression.
It was revealed during proceedings that Roby had a prior murder conviction in Florida in 1995.
A court heard how she had bought 15 bags of sand, two rolls of patch and seal tape, straw, and a dumpster bag, as well as additional plastic sheets, soil and tape. Investigators believe the items were bought to clean up the murder of her son.
Before his body was found, John’s stepmother had been sent a letter claiming to be from John which said he had travelled to the Philippines to meet a woman.
Assistant District Attorney Matthew D. Burrell said Roby had admitted to forging the letters to throw people off the scent of trying to find him.
Roby also acknowledged that she had sent the text messages pretending to be him.
Crosby Parker, the District Attorney, said he hoped Roby’s guilty plea and sentence provided a “measure of justice, accountability, and closure for the victim’s loved ones and all those affected by this heartless crime,”
He added: “Despite the extraordinary efforts this defendant made to distance herself from the murder and mislead investigators, they remained steadfast in their commitment and ultimately brought her to justice.”