Jackson County burglary investigation uncovers conspiracy to murder man with poison

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Burglary, murder and poison in a quiet southern Indiana town. Two family members are dead and another is behind bars.

It's a complicated web of crime being investigated by the Jackson County Sheriff's Office.

The sheriff's office said it started uncovering the murder conspiracy plot last month when Marsha Allen reported that her home, on North State Road 135, was burglarized.

According to court documents, two men — Steven White and Nathaniel Kane Napier — stole guns and jewelry with the help of Allen's daughter, Ashley Jones.

Allen believed her daughter, Jones, was involved because she was the only one who knew the combination to the gun safe.

During the burglary investigation, one of the suspects told authorities that Allen had poisoned her husband, Harold Allen, who died in December 2022.

Deputies eventually found text messages between Marsha Allen and Jones discussing the murder of Harold Allen using poison.

"This is Jackson County, Indiana. This don't happen," said Richard Brewer.

Brewer lives next door to the house where the burglary happened, and what police have uncovered has left him stunned.

"Very sad, I mean, my neighbors and you don't even know what's going on," he said.

According to court documents, authorities searched the Allens' home and took electronics in the hopes of finding evidence.

Then, on Monday, police found Marsha Allen dead in her home with no signs of violence. But investigators have not yet released how she died.

"He talked high of her, I'm telling ya, I mean he really said 'straightened my life out' and all this that and the other and then now, this, so," said Brewer.

Investigators said they spoke to Jones on Tuesday, and she confessed to ordering ethylene glycol, an odorless, colorless chemical commonly used in antifreeze, off the internet.

Jones told police her mother, Marsha Allen, put the chemical in Harold Allen's drink, killing him.

"Harold had a lot of health issues," Brewer said. "That didn't surprise me that he passed. But to find out yesterday, or today, that he was poisoned ... that was a shock. That was a shock."

Jones is now charged with Harold Allen's murder, conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder and burglary.

Additional details about the charges are expected to be available when a probable cause affidavit is filed.