The quest Nalah Jackson ended in Indiana on Thursday afternoon, but the search for 5-month-old Kason Thomass is still ongoing.
According to a recent press conference, police arrested Jackson around 2 p.m. local time after multiple leads suggested she was in the Indianapolis area. Metro police and the FBI have actively identified Jackson, according to Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant’s press conference Thursday.
About an hour ago, police were questioning the suspect, who was charged with two counts of kidnapping on Wednesday.
Kason is Not with her at the time of arrest, nor the stolen black 2010 Honda Accord. It’s unclear if Nalah took Kason to Indianapolis.
Who is the FBI offering a $10,000 reward? “Kason’s safe return” according to Chief Bryant. Officials are urging anyone with useful information about the infant’s whereabouts to contact police at 614-645-4701.
The case is still an ongoing investigation. Investigators in the case said they received more than three dozen tips from callers in Columbus and central Ohio in the past 24 hours.
Details of Nalah Jackson’s arrest in Indiana
On Thursday morning, Ohio police began receiving reports of sightings of Jackson in Indianapolis. By 2 p.m. local time, the IMPD had arrested an individual believed to be Jackson. Her identity was confirmed within an hour, and she was taken into custody.
Three detectives from the Columbus Police Department are on their way to Indianapolis to continue their investigation. According to the conference notes, Kason’s safe return remains a top priority for officials.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol is working with the state of Indiana to update and expand the AMBER warning.
How Nalah Jackson kidnapped two 5-month-old twins and one was abandoned
As previously reported, Jackson kidnapped Kason along with his twin brother Kyair Thomass on Monday night from a Donatos parking lot in Columbus, Ohio. At the time, the children’s mother, Wilhelmina Barnett, was working as a Door Dash driver and left both children in a moving car to take orders inside the pizzeria.
When Barnett entered the facility around 9:45 p.m., Jackson, who was inside, quickly got out and stole the car with the kids inside. She then abandoned Kyair in the parking lot of Dayton International Airport – about 70 miles and an hour’s drive from where she first kidnapped the twin boys.
Surveillance footage captured Nalah inside a gas station in Huber Heights at 11:45 p.m. Monday. At the time, station staff did not see the boys, although Jackson is said to have spent at least 30 minutes in the bathroom. She dropped Kyair off at the airport around 4 a.m. Tuesday.
Based on WDTN2, Jackson has a criminal history related to obtaining custody of her own children. She is said to have been in and out of prison for the past four years.
This is an evolving story.
