More than a year after she was charged along with several others with the murder of her grandchildren's mother, Veronica Butler, and Jilian Kelley, a beloved pastor's wife, former Cimarron County GOP Chair Tifany Machel Adams has pleaded no contest to their murders in Texas County, Oklahoma.
When a defendant enters a plea of no contest, it means they are accepting a criminal conviction and punishment without admitting guilt. Adams' plea deal filed in the District Court of Texas County on Tuesday shows that she also pleaded no contest to two counts of unlawful removal of a dead body and two counts of desecration of a human corpse in the deaths of Kelley, 39, and Butler, 27.
Kelley was the wife of Pastor Heath Kelley, who at the time of her death last year led Hugoton First Christian Church in Kansas. Heath Kelley had recently agreed to serve as the new pastor of Willow Christian Church in Nebraska, starting in June 2024.
Both women disappeared in Oklahoma on March 30, 2024. A source close to Butler told ABC 7 that the missing mom was supposed to pick up her 6-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son in Eva, Oklahoma, to celebrate her daughter's birthday. Butler had been involved in an ongoing custody battle with the family of her children's father, Wrangler Cole Rickman, who is Adams' son.
Jilian Kelley had traveled with Butler from Elkhart on what was supposed to be a 16-mile trip, but the trip ended three miles short of their destination.
Their vehicle was found abandoned near Highway 95 and Road L, south of Elkhart, Kansas, in rural Texas County. In April, investigators would find their bodies buried in a freezer.
In addition to Adams, investigators who found evidence suggesting foul play in the women's disappearance also charged Tad Bert Cullum, 44; Cole Earl Twombly, 51; and Cora Twombly, 45.
Investigators confirmed that the murders were connected to a five-year custody battle between Butler and Adams, who had been fighting to keep her grandchildren away from both Butler and her son — a drug addicted convict. It is alleged that while her grandchildren were in Butler's care, the children were sexually abused by Butler's brother.
In the affidavit against Adams, investigators note that: "At times Adams refused to let Rickman have his children, even though Rickman had legal custody of them. Law enforcement previously responded to a call for service where Adams refused to give Rickman his children. Reportedly, the officer told Rickman he believed the children were better off in Adams' care."
Adams also did not want Butler to have unsupervised access to the children anymore because of the sexual abuse claims, but Butler's attorney told investigators that she was on the verge of winning unsupervised visits with her children and Adams did not want that to happen. A hearing was scheduled for the case on April 17.
It is alleged that before the women went missing on March 30, the four suspects tried to kill Butler, but Butler would not leave her home.
Investigators learned from the 16-year-old daughter of Cora Twombly and Coby White that her mother and her stepfather, Cole Twombly, as well as the other murder suspects, were part of God's Misfits, described as an "anti-government group that has a religious affiliation." The group met weekly with the Twomblys and at the home of Barrett and Lacy Cook.
Before her arrest for murder, Adams served as the Cimarron County GOP Chair, which Oklahoma State Sen. Nathan Dahm confirmed.
"This is a tragic situation, with innocent children being at the center," Dahm said of the murders at the time of Adams' arrest, according to KOCO News 5. "We ask everyone to join us in praying for the family and most especially the children devastated by this horrible tragedy."
