A Mississippi woman was sentenced to life in prison after she admitted to killing her son and hiding his body behind a fake wall in her home.
After Jerri Roby pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of her adult son, John Gaither, she was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole on Wednesday, July 22.
Police said that Roby, 69, fatally shot Gaither, 42, at her home in Gulfport, Mississippi, around December 10, 2023. Following the shooting, she kept his body hidden inside the house.
Several of Gaither’s family members called police to report they had not heard from him, according to court documents obtained by WLOX. Gaither was living with Roby at the time he seemingly went missing.
Authorities said that Roby started telling different stories about where Gaither was, which caused suspicion among his other family members. Roby initially told their family members that her son took an Uber to Louisiana to buy a car, though there was no recent activity on Uber account.
Roby’s lies continued, and she sent a letter to Gaither’s father and stepmother asking if they heard from him after he had not shown up for work. Roby also sent a letter to Gaither’s employer pretending to be him, in which she claimed he had gone to the Philippines to meet a woman.
Gaither’s other family members eventually reported him as a missing person, and police searched Roby’s home amid the investigation.
As authorities looked through the residence, they found a receipt from Home Depot that showed that Roby bought 15 bags of sand, patch and seal tape, straw and a dumpster bag. The receipt revealed that she bought the items at the store about a week before Gaither’s missing persons report was filed.
As the investigation continued, police learned that Roby was previously arrested and served time for killing her drug dealer in December 1993. She fatally shot the drug dealer and stuffed his body in the trunk of her car, but was caught when she was pulled over by police and they found the body.
Roby initially threatened to shoot herself, but was then taken into custody, posted bail and fled town.
Authorities eventually found her in July 1995 and she was arrested again on a second-degree murder charge.
After police learned about her criminal past, they obtained and executed a search warrant at Roby’s house in January 2024. Authorities then found a fake wall and a large, wooden box behind it.
Gaither’s body was inside the box, which was covered with the materials she bought from Home Depot.
An autopsy was later performed and it was revealed that Gaither died of a single gunshot wound to the head.
After her son’s body was taken away, Roby was taken to a hospital for treatment after a suicide attempt. She was then taken to the police station, where Roby admitted to killing her son, as well as forging messages sent in his name.
