Jones
A Toledo man who was the subject of a nationwide man hunt is going to prison.
Jonathon Jones, 33, was transported from the jail Thursday to the courtroom of Wood County Common Pleas Judge Joel Kuhlman.
In March, Jones pleaded guilty to endangering children and attempting to commit pandering obscenity, both third-degree felonies.
He failed to appear at his sentencing hearing on May 4 and a warrant was issued.
The nationwide manhunt for Jones and a teenage girl he was traveling with started May 6.
He was arrested May 8 in Ahumada, Chihuahua, Mexico, while traveling with a 17-year-old who was reported missing to Canton police on April 11.
The 17-year-old girl has been charged with juvenile aggravated murder in the death of Jonathon Jones’ mother, 53-year-old Nicole Jones.
Defense attorney Lawrence Gold said if it were not for his client’s failure to appear, he would be a good candidate for community control.
Jones was accused of knowingly creating, reproducing or publishing material that showed a minor participating in a sexual act after he was found Oct. 24 with numerous nude photos of a 16-year-old female on his phone and numerous videos of himself and the girl having sex.
He was accused of picking up the girl in Columbus and driving her to a Millbury motel.
The endangering charge is because Jones encouraged or coerced the girl to act, model or in any other way participate in being photographed for the production or presentation of sexually oriented or nudity-oriented matter. The human trafficking specification to this charge was removed.
There was no abuse in this case and the 16-year-old, although still a minor, was a willing participant with her own Facebook page, Gold said.
“This was the business she was in,” he said. “She was a willing participant.”
Jones also is a military veteran, having served from 2009-13, including active duty in Afghanistan, Gold said.
Jones was indicted in June for failure to appear, a fourth-degree felony, and vandalism, a fifth-degree felony.
The vandalism charge is due to Jones cutting off his GPS ankle monitor.
He pleaded guilty Thursday to both charges.
Kuhlman said the most recent case has to be taken into consideration at sentencing.
He imposed 36-month prison sentences for the endangering and pandering charges, to be served concurrently.
Kuhlman also imposed 18 months for the failure to appear and 12 months for the vandalism charges, also to be served concurrently.
Sentences for the two cases will be served consecutively for a total of 54 months in the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.
Jones will be given credit for time served.
Upon his release, he must register as a Tier II sex offender, which will require him to register every 180 days for 25 years, and will be placed on mandatory five years of post-release control.
