Two defendants plead not guilty in killings of Kansas moms

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Two suspects in the slayings of two Kansas mothers entered pleas Wednesday in an Oklahoma courtroom.

Tad Cullum pleaded not guilty in Texas County in the deaths of Veronica Butler and Jilian Kelley.

Cole Twombly did not say anything when asked for his plea, so the court entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.

They are each charged with two counts of first-degree murder, one count of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of unlawful removal of a dead body and two counts of unlawful desecration of a human corpse.

Butler and Kelley disappeared on Easter weekend of 2024. They were traveling from Hugoton to Oklahoma, where Kelley was supposed to supervise Butler’s visit with her children.

Their bodies were found two weeks later in a chest freezer, which was buried under a concrete slab in a field in Texas County, Oklahoma. Autopsies revealed that both women were stabbed to death, authorities said.

Court documents allege that the women were killed over a custody dispute involving Butler’s children.

Tiffany Adams — the grandmother of the children — pleaded no contest last month to two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of unlawful removal of a dead body and two counts of unlawful desecration of a human corpse.

Her sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 28.

The remaining two defendants — Cora Twombly and Paul Grice — also appeared in court Wednesday.

The judge scheduled Cullum’s trial for June 1 and Cole Twombly’s trial for Oct. 19.

The district attorney is seeking the death penalty against both of them.