A whispered 911 call from a child has led to murder and kidnapping charges against a Missouri father who is accused of killing his wife in a hotel room roughly 10 months ago. Jonathan Houston, 44, is charged with one count each of first-degree murder and kidnapping. Investigators allege he directed his own children to take part.
According to Law&Crime, the Callaway County Sheriff’s Office says the killing took place at the Baymont Inn and Suites in Kingdom City, a village about 30 miles east of Columbia. The victim’s name has not been made public. Houston is being held in the Callaway County Jail with no bond, and he has not been convicted of any crime.
The case began late on a Sunday morning, when a child called 911 and whispered that they needed help, per a probable cause statement. The child reportedly told the dispatcher that their father had “captured” them and their siblings and had been beating them for five years. Deputies traced the phone to the hotel, where Houston was living with his seven children.
A girl reportedly signaled a deputy behind the Missouri father’s back
Deputies spoke with Houston about the call when they arrived. While the children were being spoken to, one girl made a hand signal to a deputy behind her father’s back, the sheriff’s office said. In another room, she reportedly told the deputy that Houston “killed her mother” by strangling her in late 2025.
The children were then taken for in-depth interviews. One daughter said her mother was killed a day after Houston told her he had a plan to do it. Another said she watched him get on top of her mother and strangle her with his hands, and that he yelled at her to pour hot water on her mother’s legs.
That girl told investigators the strangulation lasted roughly five minutes before her mother’s arm stopped moving. Afterward, Houston allegedly placed the body in a fetal position, wrapped it with exercise bands and put it in a large trash bag. She said he then took it into the hallway and left it in the hotel dumpster.
The charging document claims the Missouri father confirmed the account. “Houston stated that everything his children had said was true,” the probable cause statement reads. He reportedly admitted telling the children the night before that he was going to kill his wife, and said he made sure the three youngest were in the bathroom first.
Investigators say he also described the torture his daughter recounted. Per the statement, he instructed one child to cover his wife’s mouth and another to pour hot water on her legs. He purportedly told the children to play a song from KPop Demon Hunters loudly so nobody would hear her screaming, and said he stopped her from leaving the room more than once.
Houston supposedly added that he used a dolly to move the body to the dumpster. As for motive, investigators believe he killed his wife of 17 years as he feared losing his children. Another recent domestic case involved an Alabama man accused of forcing a relative to drive him to North Carolina at gunpoint. Police there say he called a sheriff’s office to say he had shot his wife.
The probable cause statement says Houston “orchestrated his children to assist in a premeditated homicide” and showed no remorse. However, those are the claims of investigators and have not been tested in court. The documents also note that he previously worked as a probation and parole officer and as a state corrections officer.
The sheriff’s office says the Missouri father is also under investigation for sexual assault and assault involving other victims. However, the only counts listed against him so far are first-degree murder and kidnapping, and the woman at the center of the case has still not been publicly named.
Houston remains in jail without bond, and further court dates are expected to show whether prosecutors add to the charges already filed against the Missouri father.
Published: Oct 8, 2026 08:30 am