A Missouri woman was charged today in connection with conspiring with her mother to kill a Freetown man with ethylene glycol in December 2022, according to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department.
Ashley Nicole Jones, 29, of Bellflower confessed to ordering the odorless and colorless liquid off the internet during an interview Tuesday with investigators with the sheriff’s department.
Jones was arrested at the Jackson County Jail in Brownstown on Wednesday, where she was being held on a related burglary charge. She now also faces charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder and attempted murder.
Jones told police her mother, Marsha Allen, had placed the liquid, which can be found in antifreeze, brake fluids and ballpoint pens, into a drink that Marsha had given to her 52-year-old husband, Harold L. “Peanut” Allen Jr., according to a news release from Sheriff Rick Meyer.
Harold Allen died Dec. 20, 2022, and was buried at New Providence Cemetery in Austin.
On Monday morning, Marsha Allen was found inside the home she had shared with her husband until his death. At 7:52 a.m., county officers responded to that home on north State Road 135 after Marsha’s family contacted the police department and reported they had been unable to contact her.
When officers entered the home, they found Marsha dead with no signs of any violence, police said.
Meyer said the investigation that led to Jones’ arrest in connection with Harold Allen’s death started on Sept. 19 when Marsha Allen reported her home had been burglarized.
At that time, officers were able to examine Marsha’s cellphone and found text messages between her and Jones in which they discussed the poisoning of Harold Allen.
Police then obtained a search warrant for the home and seized additional electronic devices in an effort to find evidence, Meyer said. While executing the warrant, police interviewed Allen and then released her, he said.
County officers also were able to determine Steven Andrew White, 29, of Scottsburg and Nathaniel Kane Napier, 28 of Scottsburg had committed the burglary at the direction and with the assistance of Jones, police said.
Both men were booked into the Jackson County Jail on Sept. 19 and face burglary and theft charges. They remain in jail on $4,005 bond.
The relationship between Jones and Harold Allen was not available this morning, and police declined to discuss a motive for Harold’s death or the burglary of Marsha’s home.
The investigation is ongoing, and anyone with information may contact Meyer at 812-358-2141.