Police in Independence, Missouri, arrested 18-year-old Jacob Jett and his co-conspirator, 17-year-old Joseph Garcia, on charges of second-degree attempted murder and armed criminal action. According to police officials, the charges stemmed from an alleged plot to murder Jett's parents, Richard and Robyn Parnell. The apparent motive was Jett's desire to inherit his parents' money.
Court documents indicated that investigators initially became aware of the situation last week after 23-year-old Russell Anderson notified them of the plot. Anderson recently served time at the Clay County Jail for violating the terms of his probation. He reportedly told police that Jett and Garcia contacted him and another friend, 19-year-old Nicholas E. Dobbins, the previous month and asked the men to murder Jett's parents. Anderson reported that the two teens gave Dobbins and Anderson $260 in cash, a debit card, three handguns, and the code for the alarm system at Jett's parents’ home in southeastern Independence. Jett and Garcia also reportedly told the men that they could take additional valuables from the home after they completed the job.
After taking Anderson's statements, police spoke with Dobbins, who confirmed his friend's story. Police officials then took both Jett and Garcia into custody late Monday afternoon. Following the teens' arrests, the Parnells allegedly reported to police that $300 was missing from their checking account, along with three handguns, two .22-caliber pistols, and a .38-caliber pistol from their gun collection.
During police questioning, Jett allegedly confessed to giving the money and other items to Anderson and Dobbins to murder his parents. Garcia also allegedly confessed to knowing about the plot and introducing Jett to Anderson and Dobbins.
Jackson County prosecutor Jim Kanatzar told the Associated Press yesterday, "[Jett] was motivated by greed to obtain their money." He added, "We also have some information that he was having some personal problems with his parents. Nothing that was too unusual, but he was upset with limitations that his parents were imposing upon him; he thought they were too strict."
Police officials confirm that both Jett and Garcia attend Truman High School. Jett is a senior, whereas Garcia is a junior. According to the Parnells, they adopted Jett, their only child, when he was 5 months old. They described him to the media as a "good child" who had no previous interactions with the legal system. "We kept close tabs on him," Robyn Parnell stated in a telephone interview with Kansascity.com. "This came out of nowhere."
Jett and Garcia are both being held on $250,000 cash bonds. If convicted on both counts, the teens face a maximum sentence of life in prison.