The unimaginable Abuse endured by Adrian,

The murder of A little boy that shocked the Nation 

In the fall of 2015, the murder of 7-year-old Adrian Jones shocked the nation. His scattered remains were discovered in a barn; his father, Michael Jones, and stepmother, Heather Jones, had fed his remains to pigs in an attempt to conceal his death. The pigs were purchased almost immediately after Adrian died. So how did an innocent little boy who once loved football meet such a gruesome demise?

The day before the grim discovery in the pig pen, police were called to the house that Adrian shared with his father, Michael, and Michael’s wife, Heather. Also living in the house was their six daughters. The police were there for a domestic disturbance call. While there, police discovered that Adrian had been missing for several months. They noted that surveillance cameras were set up throughout the house. It was soon uncovered that these cameras captured the unimaginable abuse endured by Adrian, as did countless photographs found on the couple’s computer.

His last few months on this earth were an absolute living hell. When he wasn’t being beaten with fists or objects such as broomsticks, he was locked behind a plywood door in a shower. Some days he would be forced to stand for hours in stagnant water in a swimming pool up to his neck. He was constantly shackled, handcuffed and bound and was systematically starved. He was frequently strapped to an inversion table and forced to stand outside in the freezing cold. In some photographs, Adrian had cutting boards strapped to his front and back, forcing him to stand straight. One photograph showed a close-up of his shredded and bloody lips, caused by him attempting to chew out of his plywood prison. Some days Adrian would be stunned with a stun gun. Ultimately, he starved to death. Alarms were placed on the fridge and food cupboard so that Adrian couldn’t  stead food . 

Even in death, Adrian received no dignity when his body was thrown to pigs to feast on. Adrian suffered immeasurable torture and abuse for such a prolonged period that it begs the question: How did nobody know? As it soon transpired, people did know; Adrian had pleaded for help.

Two years before his death, Adrian told a Missouri Children’s Division worker and a police officer that his father would kick him so hard in the back of his head that a “little bone came out.” An anonymous caller had reported possible abuse at the household. “My daddy keeps hitting me in the head and punches me in the stomach and my mom keeps pulling on my ears and it really hurts.” Nevertheless, they recorded that they found no evidence of physical abuse and didn’t remove him from the home .

In fact, DCF received 10 phone calls in regards to the evident abuse taking place in the Jones household in the run up to his murder. Each time they investigated, however, they found that nothing was awry, even despite the fact that Adrian had told them he was being abused. At one point, he told them he was forced to sleep outside and stole food from the trash can yet nothing was done and his nightmare continued as usual. "All that stuff Adrian was saying, why didn’t they pull those kids out of the house?“ his grandmother questioned. 

Michael pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison. His wife, Heather Jones, also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison.