Suspect arrested after woman killed, her 2 young daughters abducted and 1 killed, authorities say

Jackson, Miss. — A Louisiana woman was found dead in her home Thursday and her two young daughters were abducted and found hours later in Mississippi — one dead and the other alive, police said.

A Louisiana resident who’d dated the woman was arrested in Jackson, Mississippi, in connection with the deaths and abductions, investigators said.

The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office in Louisiana identified the suspect as 36-year-old Daniel Callihan.

“He had the victim’s car along with her alive-and-well 6-year-old child,” said office Chief Deputy Jimmy Travis.

The body of the other child, a 4-year-old, was found near the car in a wooded area in Jackson, Travis said. The office identified her as Erin Brunett.

CBS Jackson affiliate WJTV reported that the city’s police chief, Joseph Wade, identified Erin’s sister as 6-year-old Jalie Brunett. Wade said she was taken to a hospital for treatment. He said Callihan was caught after a chase.

Louisiana State Police issued an Amber Alert for the children after their mother, Callie Brunett, 35, was found dead in her home Thursday in Loranger, about 60 miles east of Baton Rouge. She’d been reported missing after no one had spoken with her since Tuesday, Travis said. A cause of death wasn’t immediately released.

WJTV quoted Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Daniel Edwards as saying Callie Brunett’s body was found dead by her father on the floor of her bedroom inside her locked mobile home.

“This was just an unspeakable crime,” Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Daniel Edwards said. “Our hearts and prayers go out to the victims’ family. It was a horrendous tragedy.”

Jackson Police Chief Joseph Wade said officers contacted the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation’s human trafficking division about the case. He said small animal cages were discovered at the wooded area.

“He tried to do away with the children by taking them into this wooded area,” Wade said of the suspect, adding, “This was a horrible, horribly tragic situation that was committed by the actions of a coward.”