CLERMONT, Fla. – A man from Southeast Michigan has been charged with kidnapping, sexual battery, and murdering two people at a campground near Disney in Florida, officials said.
Investigators from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office were called around 2 p.m. Wednesday (Aug. 31) to the Thousand Trails Resort in Clermont, according to WKMG in Orlando.
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Police said they received a call from a woman who told them she had witnessed a murder. She said the person responsible was Justin Lamar Jones, 41, of Howell Township, Michigan.
“A female at this home reported to the Sheriff’s Office that she had witnessed a homicide take place in the home, and after that, she was tied up by the suspect and sexually battered throughout the day,” Lake County Lt. John Herrell said.
The woman said she had escaped and fled to a neighbor’s house to call for help, according to police. She told them Jones had murdered his stepson, but deputies have not yet confirmed the victim’s identity, they said.
Detectives discovered the body when they got to the scene, and while they were investigating, they found a second body inside the trailer, they said. Neither victim has been identified.
“This is a tragic situation,” Herrell said. “This is one of the worst ones we’ve heard of in a while.”
Shortly after police discovered the bodies, Jones’ SUV was spotted in a Publix parking lot on U.S. 27 in Clermont, authorities said. Jones got out and ran toward a Walgreens before officials took him into custody at 2:55 p.m., police said.
Jones is charged with kidnapping, sexual battery, and two counts of first-degree murder. He’s scheduled to make his first court appearance Thursday morning in Lake County.
