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Ohio teen gave boyfriend ultimatum to kill her mother | US News

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Ohio teen gave boyfriend ultimatum to kill her mother | US News

Kaitlyn Coones attacked her boyfriend's mother with a rock and then strangled her to death

Kaitlyn Coones (left) attacked her boyfriend’s mother with a rock, then strangled her to death (Photo: Sylvania Township Police)

An 18-year-old girl told her older boyfriend that if he didn’t kill her mother, she would, claiming her mother was interfering in their relationship.

Kaitlyn Coones attacked Nicole Jones, 53, with a rock, then strangled her to death, before disposing of her body with the help of her boyfriend.

The couple then fled to Mexico before being apprehended by authorities.

Coones, who had a difficult childhood, had previously run away from children’s homes.

Authorities feared she had been kidnapped when she disappeared from a children’s home in Canton, Ohio, in April 2020.

Her boyfriend was Jonathon Jones, 33, who had been ordered by the courts to stay away from her but who had nevertheless secretly met Coomes at a local restaurant that evening.

Jones drove them to his mother’s house in Sylvania Township, a suburb of Toledo.

But his mother did not approve of their relationship, so Coones avoided her by crawling into the house through a window and hiding in his bedroom.

A 17-year-old Ohio girl fatally bludgeoned her older boyfriend's mother with a rock — after giving him a five-hour deadline to kill her himself, authorities said. Kaitlyn Coones of Cleveland is being tried as an adult for murder in the death of Nicole Jones, 53, with prosecutors saying the teen beat Nicole to death in April — just days after she left her foster home to be with her boyfriend, Jonathan Jones, 33. Coones allegedly gave Jones — who had previously been convicted of his illegal relationship with the underage girl — a five-hour deadline to kill her mother, who disapproved of their relationship.

Jones had been convicted a month earlier of charges related to his relationship with the teenager, which began when she was just 15.

He pleaded guilty to child endangerment and distribution of obscene material after having sex with Coones and taking photos of her when she was a minor.

Jones was ordered to wear a GPS tracking device ahead of his upcoming sentencing and was barred from seeing Coones after defying the court order.

When the children’s home reported Coones missing, authorities became concerned.

A staff member at the children’s home received a message, apparently from Coones, saying she had “killed two people” and was on the run. The message also claimed that one of the victims was Jones’ mother.

When police arrived at Nicole’s home, she was gone and there was no sign of Coones or Jones. However, there were signs that someone had tried to clean up blood on the kitchen floor and under the refrigerator.

A manhunt was launched on May 6. Following Jones’ recent convictions, investigators determined that Coones was most likely kidnapped, possibly after Jones killed his mother.


A 17-year-old Ohio girl fatally bludgeoned her older boyfriend's mother with a rock — after giving him a five-hour deadline to kill her himself, authorities said. Kaitlyn Coones of Cleveland is being tried as an adult for murder in the death of Nicole Jones, 53, with prosecutors saying the teen beat Nicole to death in April — just days after she left her foster home to be with her boyfriend, Jonathan Jones, 33. Coones allegedly gave Jones — who had previously been convicted of his illegal relationship with the underage girl — a five-hour deadline to kill her mother, who disapproved of their relationship.
Jonathon Jones had previous convictions for crimes related to his relationship with Coones (Photo: Sylvania Township Police)

Investigators believed it was likely Coones had been kidnapped, and the couple was last seen driving in Nicole’s car in Arizona toward the Mexican border.

Because Jones was still wearing his GPS device, police were able to track him as the couple headed to Mexico and missed their scheduled court appearance.

But they were finally found on May 8 in Chihuahua, Mexico, with Nicole’s ID and credit cards in their possession.

After being apprehended, it quickly became apparent that Coones had not been kidnapped. In fact, she confessed that it was her idea to kill Nicole all along.

Coones said Nicole was “interfering” in her relationship with Jones and wanted to get rid of her. She later told police that on April 19, she gave her older boyfriend an ultimatum: Either he kill her mother or she would do it herself.

The 18-year-old threatened to end their relationship if he didn’t do what she asked. When the deadline was up and Jones didn’t kill his mother as she asked, Coones gave him an extra hour to finish the job.

While he still hadn’t killed Nicole, Coones stayed true to her word and committed the act herself.


A 17-year-old Ohio girl fatally bludgeoned her older boyfriend's mother with a rock — after giving him a five-hour deadline to kill her himself, authorities said. Kaitlyn Coones of Cleveland is being tried as an adult for murder in the death of Nicole Jones, 53, with prosecutors saying the teen beat Nicole to death in April — just days after she left her foster home to be with her boyfriend, Jonathan Jones, 33. Coones allegedly gave Jones — who had previously been convicted of his illegal relationship with the underage girl — a five-hour deadline to kill her mother, who disapproved of their relationship.
Coones attacked Nicole Jones with a rock and then strangled her to death (Photo: Cleveland Division of Police)

Coones told police she went outside to get a large rock and hit Nicole in the head as she was leaning over the refrigerator, and strangled her to death while she was on the floor.

Jones was reportedly in the living room at the time of the attack and helped dispose of the body. He was caught on CCTV buying bin bags and tarpaulins from a nearby store.

They wrapped Nicole’s body in a tarp and put it in the trunk of her own car while they tried to clean up the crime scene.

The couple then drove to an apartment complex and dumped the victim’s body in a dumpster. Police believe her remains were picked up by a garbage truck and taken to the landfill. Jones’ GPS tracker confirmed the chain of events.

Coones told police she thought the murder would “bring them closer together as a couple.” Both were charged with murder and it was decided that Coones should be tried as an adult.

Nicole’s heartbroken family desperately wanted to find her body so they could give her a proper burial, but they were unable to do so and Nicole’s body was never found.

Coones’ attorneys insisted she was the “victim” who was under Jones’ control. They said she could not have physically killed Nicole on her own and there was no evidence she sent the message to the house staff member.


Kaitlyn Coones, a 17-year-old Ohio teen, fatally bludgeoned her older boyfriend's mother with a rock after giving him a five-hour deadline to kill her himself, authorities say. Kaitlyn Coones, of Cleveland, is being tried as an adult for murder in the death of Nicole Jones, 53, with prosecutors saying the teen beat Nicole to death in April, just days after she left her foster home to be with her boyfriend, Jonathan Jones, 33. Coones allegedly gave Jones, who had previously been convicted of his illegal relationship with the underage girl, a five-hour deadline to kill her mother, who disapproved of their relationship.
The couple was sentenced to life in prison (Photo: Lucas County Correctional Facility)

Back in custody, Jones was sentenced to 54 months in prison on the previous charges involving Coones. He and Coones later reached a plea agreement.

Prosecutors dropped several additional charges against the couple, who pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder and abuse of a corpse in June of this year.

The judge heard about Coones’ struggles in foster care and Jones’ diagnosis of PTSD after serving in Afghanistan, but said none of that was an excuse for what they did.

Coones, now 18, and Jones, 34, were both sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years.

Nicole’s brother Robert Jones said: “There are no words to describe the depth of our grief, the extent of our pain or the magnitude of our loss. Her murder has shattered our world, leaving a void that can never be filled.”

After the sentencing, Nicole’s family filed a civil suit for involuntary manslaughter against Coones and Jones seeking damages.

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