Michigan man charged with murder in 2010 disappearance of his 3 sons

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DETROIT (AP) — A Michigan man long blamed for the disappearance of his three sons at Thanksgiving in 2010 has been charged with their deaths, court records show.

John Skelton is facing three counts of murder and tampering with evidence in the deaths of 9-year-old Andrew, 7-year-old Alexander and 5-year-old Tanner Skelton, according to Lenawee County District Court records. They have never been found.

The charges, filed Wednesday, came just days before Skelton, 53, was due to be released from prison after a 15-year sentence for failing to return the boys to their mother, the only conviction in the saga so far.

A message seeking comment from the prosecutor's office was not immediately returned.

“This development marks a significant moment in a long and painful journey,” the boys' mother, Tanya Zuvers, said in a statement. “While I understand the public interest in this case, I ask that my family’s privacy be respected as we process this news and continue to grieve the loss of Andrew, Alexander, and Tanner.”

The brothers disappeared while with their father at Thanksgiving in Morenci, a small town near the Ohio border, 100 miles (160 kilometers) southwest of Detroit.

Skelton and his wife, Zuvers, were having problems and living apart in Morenci in November 2010. The boys were supposed to return to her the day after the holiday. Instead, they were gone.

The brothers have not been found, despite countless searches of woods and water in Michigan and Ohio and tips from across the country.

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. Police said claims that the boys were handed to other people for their safety also turned out to be false.

A lead investigator, Michigan State Police Detective Lt. Jeremy Brewer, said in March that he had “no doubt whatsoever” that Skelton killed the brothers. He was testifying at a hearing to declare the boys legally dead.

Skelton declined to participate in that court hearing, telling a judge by videoconference from prison: “Anything I say isn’t going to make a difference."

When investigators entered Skelton's home after the boys' disappearance, they found a mess, with broken glass, severed appliance cords and a noose hanging from the second floor. A Bible was open with a verse circled.

A note apparently left for Zuvers said, “You will hate me forever and I know this,” FBI agent Corey Burras testified.

“That was his passive admission to killing the children,” Burras said.