Couple arrested after search for husband’s mom allegedly leads to shallow backyard grave

JACKSON, Miss. (WKRC) – A couple was arrested after a search for the husband’s elderly mother allegedly led police to a shallow grave containing human remains in the couple’s backyard.

The Jackson Police Department requested the public’s help to find 81-year-old Carol Ryan in a Facebook post made on December 22, saying she disappeared from a nursing home and had not been heard from in “several months.”

During a press conference, Jackson Police Chief Tyree Jones said their investigation led them to a residence that they believed could have key evidence buried on its property.

“Excavators were brought into the scene to conduct a dig in the backyard,” Jones said.

Jones said the excavators dug up what appeared to be a body wrapped in a tarp and concrete. Authorities were unable to immediately confirm if the remains belonged to Ryan, and Jones said the body was likely buried “long before” the 81-year-old was reported missing.

Following the discovery, Ryan’s 50-year-old son John Ryan and his wife 48-year-old Samantha Ryan were arrested and charged with desecrating a human corpse. Jones said John and Samantha lived with Carol at some point, but authorities were not sure if she was living with them when she disappeared.