Jon-Niece Jones

Jon-Niece Jones was a nine-year-old African-American girl who was murdered on August 2002 by her mother (who later died on the same year) and buried by three other relatives. Her skeletal remains were discovered on March 2005, and on October 2012, Jon-Niece was identified through a tip, which subsequently led to the charging of the relatives.

Brief Case History
Jon-Niece was born in (approximately) 1993 at Harlem, New Jersey, to Elisha Jones, who systematically physically, emotionally, and psychologically abused her as well as neglecting her. She had one older sister named Iyonna. The family lived in an apartment complex with Elisha's sister Likisha, who ignored the abuse Jon-Niece was suffering, as did her boyfriend Godfrey Gibson and Elisha and Likisha's brother James. The entire family was barely remembered by other residents in the complex, with those who actually did later vaguely recalling them as "nice". Likely because of the neglect, Jon-Niece never attended school and was apparently never seen by anyone in the apartment, let alone outside. On August 15, 2002, Jon-Niece died as a result of the years of abuse she suffered from her mother. Afterwards, Elisha, Likisha, James, and Godfrey took her corpse to a gated wooded area in Upper Freehold Township, called Clayton Park; it was located near the Six Flags theme park. There, they set it on fire before leaving; the remains were then covered by growing tall grass and undergrowth. Four months after the incident occurred, Elisha died from an unspecified medical condition. On March 18, 2005, a hunter exploring the area discovered Jon-Niece's partially-buried skull and jawbone, which was later followed by the rest of the remains when New Jersey State Police cordoned the area off and excavated it.

Investigators later developed a composite sketch and a CGI-rendered image of her face based on a scan on the skull, as well as a DNA profile, in hopes of identifying the then-unidentified Jon-Niece. Their description of her was that she was an African-American girl between the ages of five and nine, who died between 2001 and 2004. However, no leads were made and the case, which was called "Baby Bones", was at a dead end. In 2009, the TV show America's Most Wanted broadcast an episode featuring detectives on the case seeking new information, thus giving the case more widespread public attention. However, no one still came forward with new clues, and the case briefly went cold. Finally, on August 2012, a tip was made to local child welfare services about the body's identity. After re-investigating the case using the tip, police were able to identify Jon-Niece and arrest Likisha, James, and Godfrey (who had married Likisha by that time) on October 9. All three were charged with counts of evidence tampering, obstruction of justice, apprehension hindering, and conspiracy to commit said crimes; Godfrey later received an additional charge of obstruction of justice after threatening a witness on the case. The superintendent of the New Jersey State Police later commented, "The family members of Jon-Niece Jones turned a blind eye to the constant physical and mental abuse this young girl endured for years. Because of the hard work by investigators, these three suspects will now have to answer for their alleged unthinkable actions." It was later revealed that the tip was made by Jon-Niece's sister Iyonna. To date (March 2014), there have been no updates regarding the case, although Likisha, James, and Godfrey still remain incarcerated.

Offenders

 * Elisha Jones (d. December 2002):
 * Jon-Niece's mother
 * Physically, emotionally, and psychologically abused Jon-Niece for years prior to her death
 * Responsible for murdering her daughter on August 15, 2002
 * Died on the same year as Jon-Niece's murder from an unspecified medical condition
 * Subsequently escaped a trial and sentencing
 * Likisha Jones (b. 1973):
 * Jon-Niece's aunt
 * Arrested in connection with Jon-Niece's murder alongside James Jones and Godfrey Gibson
 * Charged with fourth-degree evidence tampering, fourth-degree obstruction of justice, third-degree hindering the apprehension of another, and conspiracy to commit said crimes
 * Bail was set at $40,000
 * James Jones (b. 1977):
 * Jon-Niece's uncle
 * Charged with fourth-degree evidence tampering, fourth-degree obstruction of justice, third-degree hindering the apprehension of another, and conspiracy to commit said crimes
 * Bail was set at $40,000
 * Godfrey Gibson (b. 1964):
 * Husband of Likisha Jones
 * Was Likisha's boyfriend at the time of Jon-Niece's death
 * Drove the car to Clayton Park for Elisha, Likisha, and James
 * Charged with fourth-degree evidence tampering, fourth-degree obstruction of justice, third-degree hindering the apprehension of another, and conspiracy to commit said crimes
 * Was then charged with another count of third-degree hindering the apprehension of another after threatening a witness
 * Bail was set at $75,000

On Criminal Minds
Since the Baby Bones case did not become infamous until relatively recently, there have been no mentions or references of it in Criminal Minds. However, it may have been a source of inspiration for Kelly Taylor, one of the known victims of pedophilic serial killer Jason Nelson. Both Jon-Niece Jones and Kelly were underage African-American girls who were murdered in 2002 and had their bodies disposed of in wooded areas, remaining undiscovered for several years until their skulls were found, then the rest of their remains. Both cases also involved the killers having three accomplices who assisted them in the crimes in some way (one of Nelson's accomplices had directly assisted in Kelly's rape and the other two watched and stayed silent, while Elisha Jones's accomplices helped her disposed of Jon-Niece's body). On an unrelated note, The Pact, the episode featuring Kelly's case, aired on October 2012, the same time when Jon-Niece was properly identified, and in addition, the episode aired on October 10, exactly one day after Likisha, James, and Godfrey's arrests.