Gulfport, Mississippi – A 66-year-old woman, Jerri Lynn Isreal, has been arrested and is facing first-degree murder charges after her son was found dead in a box hidden behind a false wall. The Gulfport Police Department announced her arrest on Saturday, Jan. 20.
The arrest came after the police received a call on Dec. 22, 2023, reporting a missing person. Upon conducting a welfare check at Isreal’s residence, officers noticed discrepancies in the statements she provided. Subsequently, during the investigation, Isreal became uncooperative and changed her statements multiple times.
On Jan. 18, detectives and crime scene technicians conducted a search of Isreal’s residence and found a wooden box containing a deceased person behind a false wall. The body was later identified as Isreal’s son, John Allen Gaither. Isreal was then transported to a local hospital for medical treatment and later processed and transported to the Harrison County Adult Detention Center.
During the investigation, detectives found that Isreal had a prior arrest and conviction for murder in Florida in 1995. It was discovered that she had committed the murder and attempted to dispose of the body at different locations throughout the state. This information led the police to obtain a search warrant for Isreal’s residence in connection to her son’s death.