Johnston County Sheriff's Office
The gruesome discovery came after the North Carolina father called 911 and said "he had killed his children," while a fifth kid was found "unharmed" -- this more than a year after his wife "passed away suddenly" in their home.
A North Carolina man is behind bars, accused of murdering four of his children and hiding their bodies in a trunk for months.
Wellington Delano Dickens III was arrested Monday, October 27 and later charged with four counts of murder in the deaths of four young victims; Leah Dickens, 6; Zoe Dickens, 9; Wellington Dickens, 10; and Sean Brasfield, 18. Per local reports, Brasfield, was Dickens' stepson, while the other three were his biological children.
He's being held in the Johnston County Jail without bond.
According to a press release from the Johnston County Sheriff's Office, 911 operators received a call from a man later identified as Dickens around 10:09 p.m on Monday, in which he said "he had killed his children."
Sheriff's deputies responded to the call, with Dickens allegedly telling them that his "3-year-old son was inside the house alive and 4 of his other children were deceased inside the trunk of a vehicle in the garage of the residence." The 3-year-old was found "unharmed" inside, per authorities.
In the trunk of Dickens' vehicle were human remains from multiple bodies "that had been there for a long period of time," said the sheriff. Per a warrant via USA Today, the date of the offenses was listed as May 1.
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View Story"Through further investigation it is believed Mr. Dickens killed three of his biological children, ages 6, 9 and 10, and his 18-year-old stepchild," the sheriff stated. "Due to the apparent time since death, positive identification of the decedents will be confirmed with the assistance of the State Medical Examiner's Office."
The victims were IDed in a later update.
Dickens was first arrested on one count of murder in the death of one of his children, with authorities initially stating "multiple additional charges" were anticipated. The three additional murder charges were added later.
The arrest comes about a year and a half after the death of Dickens' wife, Stephanie Rae Jones Dickens.
According to her obituary, Stephanie "passed away suddenly at her home" in April 2024, leaving behind her husband and five children.
Dickens has a probable cause hearing set for November 13, per USA TODAY, and will be assigned a public defender.
If you are experiencing or witness child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. If you believe a child is in immediate danger, call 911.
