Police say Ohio mom killed her 11-year-old son, left body at Mississippi hotel

Published 12:13 pm Wednesday, March 18, 2020

An Ohio woman who killed her 11-year-old son and left his body in a Mississippi hotel was arrested in New Orleans on Wednesday, police said.

Latina Marie Oates, 33, of Powell, Ohio, was arrested about 9 a.m. Wednesday, Laurel, Mississippi Police Chief Tommy Cox told The Associated Press. Oates has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Joshua Oates, Cox said.

The boy’s body was found Tuesday in a hotel in the south Mississippi town. Cox didn’t say how he died.

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Two other children with Latina Oates — 9-year-old Mark Anthony Oates and 6-year-old Justin Lamar Oates — were found on Wednesday and are safe, Cox said. He said police have contacted family members in Ohio.

Police in Mississippi and Louisiana had issued bulletins warning that the children were “believed to be in imminent danger” after the body was found. They said surveillance video showed Oates leaving a Hampton Inn with the younger children.