According to court records, a man who is suspected of killing a lady in Louisiana last month and abducting her two girls, ages four and six, to Mississippi (where one of them was later discovered dead) has been charged with murder, kidnapping, and other offenses in relation to the children’s cases in Mississippi.
Court documents filed in Mississippi’s Hinds County on June 28 reveal that Daniel Callihan was indicted on seven counts by a grand jury, including possession of a stolen vehicle, two counts of kidnapping, three counts of sexual battery, and capital murder in relation to the 4-year-old’s death.
In the cases involving the children, Victoria Cox, the woman suspected of being his accomplice, was also charged with capital murder in connection with the 4-year-old’s death, kidnapping, and sexual battery.
Callihan, 36, is charged by Louisiana authorities with killing Callie Brunett, the mother of the children, at her Loranger, Louisiana, home last month, then kidnapping the two daughters and bringing them to Mississippi. Authorities in Jackson, Mississippi, said that on June 13, the 4-year-old daughter was discovered dead and the 6-year-old injured but alive on a farm.
In addition to being charged on state charges in Louisiana last month, Callihan and Cox—who were detained in Mississippi on June 13 and June 14, respectively—also face federal accusations.
Cox’s Hinds County public defender, Christopher Routh stated, “An indictment is nothing more than a formal charge and is no indication of guilt or culpability. Every person charged or accused of a crime in this country is presumed innocent. Ms. Cox maintains her innocence and will plead not guilty at her arraignment.”
After discovering Brunett dead in her Loranger house, Louisiana authorities released an Amber Alert on June 13 for her daughters, who were reported missing.
A few hours after the Amber Alert was issued, Callihan was taken into custody by police in a wooded area next to a Jackson home, about 130 miles north of Brunett’s Louisiana residence. The 4-year-old’s death was later discovered, according to the authorities. According to authorities, the 6-year-old was found hurt and rushed to a hospital.
The woodland area, which contained tiny cages and wiring enclosures, may be connected to human trafficking, according to investigators.
According to Jimmy Travis, chief of the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office, investigators thought Callihan had dated Brunett “off and on.” This was stated last month.
Over $62,000 has been received by a GoFundMe page established “in loving support of the Brunett family in a time of unimaginable suffering.”
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Charges in the State of Louisiana
According to court documents filed in Louisiana’s Tangipahoa Parish, on June 20, a grand jury indicted Callihan on two charges of first-degree murder, one for the killing of Brunett and one for the death of the 4-year-old. There, he was also accused with second-degree and aggravated kidnapping of a minor.
According to Scott Perrilloux, the district attorney for a judicial district that includes Tangipahoa Parish, Cox was also indicted by a Louisiana grand jury on one count each of first-degree murder, aggravated kidnapping of a child, second-degree kidnapping of a child, and accessory after the fact in first-degree murder.
According to court filings submitted on Friday in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana will pursue the death penalty against Callihan for the two first-degree murder offenses.
According to court records, Callihan entered a not guilty plea to his state charges in Louisiana on Monday.
In addition, Callihan is accused with kidnapping and transporting someone with the intention of engaging in illegal sexual behavior in an eastern district federal court in Louisiana.
