The desperate search for a North Carolina mother and her two young children came to an end when their remains were discovered inside an apartment more than a week after loved ones reported them missing.
The bodies of 22-year-old Markayla Johnson, and her kids, 4-year-old Miracle Johnson and 7-month-old Messiah Johnson, were found inside a Charlotte, North Carolina, residence Friday, according to police.
Their manners of death were not disclosed.
On Sunday, authorities arrested Benjamin Joseph Taylor, 35, in Imperial County, California, where he awaits extradition for three counts of murder and one count of concealment of death in connection with the Johnson family's alleged slayings, said police.
Police said Taylor and Johnson were in a relationship. A motive remains under investigation.
"We were very relieved knowing that he was caught and he won't be doing this to anyone else's family," Johnson's sister, Tabby Holiday, said, according to WSOC-TV. "We don't really know exactly what happened, we just know the text messages started getting weird around February," she said, without elaborating.
