A Michigan man long suspected in the disappearance of his three sons at Thanksgiving in 2010 has been charged with their murders, according to court records. John Skelton, 53, faces three counts of murder and tampering with evidence in the deaths of Andrew, 9, Alexander, 7, and Tanner Skelton, 5.
The charges, filed Wednesday in Lenawee County District Court, come just days before Skelton was due to be released from prison after serving a 15-year sentence for failing to return the boys to their mother. That was the only conviction in the case so far.
The brothers vanished while with their father at Thanksgiving in Morenci, a small town near the Ohio border, about 100 miles southwest of Detroit. Skelton and his wife, Tanya Zuvers, were living apart and having problems. The boys were supposed to return to Zuvers the day after Thanksgiving but never did.
Despite countless searches of woods and water in Michigan and Ohio, and tips from across the country, the brothers have not been found. Police said Skelton fed them a long string of lies about the boys' whereabouts, sending investigators to an old schoolhouse in Kunkle, Ohio, and a dumpster in Holiday City, Ohio. Claims that the boys were handed to other people for their safety also turned out to be false.
Michigan State Police Detective Lt. Jeremy Brewer, the lead investigator, said in March that he has 'no doubt whatsoever' that Skelton killed the brothers. Testifying at a hearing to declare the boys legally dead, Brewer said, 'Anything I say isn't going to make a difference.'
A message seeking comment from the prosecutor's office was not immediately returned.
