Authorities in Oklahoma are looking into the unexpected vanishing of two mothers from Hugoton, Kansas. They did not pick up their kids from school.
The Texas County Sheriff’s Department revealed in a Facebook post on Saturday that Veronica Butler, 27, and Jilian Kelley, 39, were supposed to get Butler’s children from their school in Eva, Oklahoma, but they never arrived.
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) is helping with the case and deemed the disappearance suspicious in a statement on Sunday.
The car they were traveling in was found abandoned in a rural area near Highway 95 and Road L, south of Elkhart, Kansas, and south of the Oklahoma border.
The Kansas City Star states that Kelley is married to Heath Kelley, a minister at Willow Christian Church in Indianola, Nebraska.
“Please, please be in prayer for these women,” the church shared on Facebook Sunday. “[Jilian] is the wife of our new minister, Heath Kelley, and the sister in law of church member Hillary Kennedy. Please pray that [Jilian] and her friend Veronica are safe and that they are found quickly. God please bring these women home to their families that are so worried about them.”
Butler is described as a white female who stands 5 feet, 4 inches tall, and has red hair and green eyes. She was last seen in denim shorts, a blue short-sleeved shirt, and HEYDUDE shoes.
“Veronica has several tattoos, a Chinese symbol on her left forearm, a sunflower on her left shoulder. Jilian has a butterfly tattoo on her left forearm,” OHP added.
Kelley is described as a white female with brown hair and blue eyes. She was last seen in a long-sleeved shirt, white-washed jeans, and tan or beige shoes.
“At this time, as the investigation continues and we were requested, we’re unsure where these women are or what happened to them,” Hunter Mckee, the OSBI public information manager, said.
“That unknown is what has created it suspicious for us at this time.”
According to NewsNatioNow, Butler’s four children could be living with their paternal grandmother, who could possibly “have custody.”
The story is developing. Check back for updates.
[Feature Photos via OSBI]