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By: KENNETH DEAN, Staff Writer



Authorities foiled a plan to kill a confidential informant in numerous Smith County drug cases - a plan that officials said was orchestrated by inmates who were aided by a Smith County jailer.
Tyler Police Department Public Information Officer Don Martin said three men were in custody and are facing criminal conspiracy to commit capital murder charges, and another woman wanted in the case remains at large.
"Investigators arrested two suspects that were involved with a plot to commit murder against a witness related to a drug offense. A third suspect will be charged with this offense and is currently in Smith County Jail on unrelated drug charges," he said.
Johnathan Toliver, 36, Johnathan Brown, 32, and Jessie Jackson, 51, all of Tyler are jailed on the charges, and police are searching for Toliver's mother, Aldener Widemon Dunning, 58, for her alleged role in the plot.
HIT ORDERED
According to an arrest affidavit in the case, the confidential informant (CI) who was the target was bailed out of the Smith County Jail, where he was awaiting trial on a burglary charge, filed earlier this month.
The affidavit stated the CI was bonded out of jail Oct. 8 and called a Tyler Police detective thanking him for his help.
The detective told the CI someone else had paid the bond, not him.
"Further investigation revealed that two men identified as Ricky Jackson and Robert Jones had paid $1,400 to get (the CI) out of jail," the affidavit reads.
The investigation determined that Jones was a known associate of Toliver, also known as Bisco, and that the CI did not know either man or why they would bail him out of jail.
The affidavit stated that FBI Special Agent Garrett Floyd was told that another man had been promised $3,000 for his jail bond and an additional $1,000 to kill the CI.
Detectives further learned that Toliver's girlfriend had smuggled a cell phone into the Smith County Jail and that Toliver was using the phone to set the plan in motion.
A search of Toliver's cell revealed other information such as correspondence about the plot and a photo of the CI that had been printed off on a Smith County Jail computer.
"...(The FBI informant) stated that Johnathan Toliver had befriended a female jailer identified as Kenya Bush and reported that Toliver had her twisted, meaning he influenced her to help him," the affidavit states.
According to the FBI informant, Bush gave Toliver such information as to where the CI's family was located and that the CI and Jessie Jackson once lived together.
The affidavit stated that Jessie Jackson was supposed to take the CI to motels without cameras and keep him supplied with "dope" until he could be killed. It also stated that Brown, also known as Greasy Greg, was to help Jackson.
The investigation also revealed Ms. Dunning had paid Jackson's bond to get him out of jail and into place for the plan.


PLAN UNRAVELED
The plan began to fall apart when detectives learned that a white Cadillac was circling the bond company where the CI was located.
Detectives went to question Jackson when they noticed the white Cadillac pull into the parking lot of a duplex.
"When the driver observed investigators he backed out and attempted to leave, but was stopped by investigators just down the street from the location," the affidavit stated.
Detectives identified the driver as Brown and learned that a cell phone inside the vehicle had made several phone calls to the one in Toliver's possession in jail.
The vehicle, they learned, was registered to Ms. Dunning, as was the cell phone.
During the same time, another inmate in the jail told other detectives that he and his brother had been asked to kill the CI as well.
Police would not divulge where the CI had been placed, but he is no longer in jail.
"That situation has been taken care of and that's all I can say," Martin said.
Martin added that additional arrests may be forthcoming in the case and said Ms. Dunning has fled the area and her home located at 14287 CR 426 Lindale was vacant.
"She learned we were on our way to her work last week and she left before we got there," he said.
Smith County Sheriff J.B. Smith said an internal affairs investigation had been conducted in light of the murder for hire plot.
"She's (Ms. Bush) been terminated because she refused to cooperate with our internal investigation and depending on the outcome of this (the murder for hire) investigation she may be facing criminal charges," Smith said. "I am not surprised that one of my employees would be involved, but I am shocked. Nothing surprises me anymore."
Martin said Ms. Dunning may be driving a white 2000 Cadillac Deville bearing Texas license plate H58HNY.


Anyone with information about Ms. Dunning's whereabouts should contact the Tyler Police Department or Smith County Crime Stoppers at 903-597-2833.
Kenneth Dean covers police, fire, public safety organizations. He can be reached at 903.596.6353. e-mail: news@tylerpaper.com



©Tyler Morning Telegraph 2006

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