Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced on Jan. 7 that a Monmouth County grand jury handed up an indictment charging Likisha Jones, 39, Godfrey Gibson, 48, both of Manhattan, N.Y., and James Jones, 35, of Brooklyn, N.Y., with several charges in connection with the unlawful disposal of the body of Jon-Neice Jones, a child who died in New York several years ago.
Each defendant was charged with hindering apprehension of another, tampering with physical evidence, obstructing the administration of justice, and conspiracy to commit those crimes. According to a press release, the indictment is the result of a 2005 homicide investigation undertaken by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the New Jersey State Police.
On March 18, 2005, the skeletal remains of a child were recovered in the Clayton Park area of Upper Freehold Township after a partially buried skull and jawbone were discovered by a hunter in an area of the park near Route 526.
The ensuing investigation, later referred to as the “Baby Bones” case, revealed through DNA testing that the remains were that of Jon-Niece Jones, of Harlem, N.Y. The child was born on Sept. 5, 1992. Over the next several years, law enforcement officers continued to investigate the matter, which gained nationwide attention on March 14, 2009, when detectives appeared on “America’s Most Wanted” to enlist the public’s assistance in identifying the young girl.
The investigation concluded that Jon- Niece died when she was 9 years old on Aug. 15, 2002, at the Harlem home of her aunt, Likisha Jones. Investigators determined the child died following years of abuse and neglect by her mother, Elisha Jones, according to the press release. Detectives also discovered that Elisha Jones and two other individuals, Jon- Niece’s uncle, James Jones, and Likisha Jones’s boyfriend, Godfrey Gibson, disposed of Jon-Niece’s body in Upper Freehold Township after lighting it on fire. Elisha Jones subsequently died from a disease in December 2002.
The homicide of Jon-Niece Jones is still being reviewed by the New York County District Attorney’s Office. The office does not comment on pending investigations, according to the press release.
Hindering apprehension of another is a crime of the third degree and carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Tampering with physical evidence and obstructing the administration of justice are fourth-degree crimes that each carry a maximum sentence of 18 months in prison. The two additional charges of second-degree hindering apprehension that Godfrey Gibson faces each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Judge Thomas F. Scully, sitting in Freehold, set $40,000 bail with no 10 percent option on Likisha Jones and James Jones, and $75,000 with no 10 percent option on Godfrey Gibson. All three defendants have posted bail.
Gramiccioni thanked the New Jersey State Police, the New York Police Department Manhattan North Homicide Squad, the New York City Administration of Child Services, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, “America’s Most Wanted” and the University of North Texas DNA Laboratory for their assistance in the investigation.