TULSA, Okla. – A Webb City man involved in a murder plot pleaded guilty to the death of an Osage Nation citizen whose beaten and bullet-riddled body was found in an Oklahoma field in Mayes County.
Tre Ackerson, 29, pleaded guilty in United States District Court in Tulsa to second-degree murder for the killing of Jolene Walker Campbell, 35, an Osage Nation citizen. The plea agreement says Ackerson will serve between 25 to 50 years in prison.
Ackerson confessed to taking Campbell into a Mayes County field in northeast Oklahoma where he shot her twice, cut her throat, and hit her head repeatedly with a tire jack until she died from the injuries.
“This final conviction reflects three years of work and commitment from our law enforcement partners and federal prosecutors to provide justice for the victim and her family,” said U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson in a prepared statement.
What Happened to Jolene Walker Campbell
Ackerson spotted Campbell walking on the side of a Joplin road on July 5, 2020, and told Breanna Sloan he had robbed Campbell just a few hours earlier.
The pair plotted to rob the woman for a second time. While Ackerson hid in the woods, Sloan stopped the vehicle and offered Campbell a ride. When Campbell got into the front passenger seat, Ackerson emerged from the woods armed with a gun, climbed into the rear seat, and told Sloan to drive.
Once they were in Oklahoma, Ackerson instructed Sloan to turn into a rural field and stop on a dead-end dirt road. Ackerson then got out of the car and opened the rear passenger door, causing a still-sleeping Campbell to partially fall out into the road. That’s when he killed her.
He further admitted to conspiring with the others to obstruct, threaten, and tamper with witnesses who had information relating to the kidnapping and murder.
Campbell’s body was discovered on July 15, 2020. On July 20, 2021, 11 defendants from the Joplin area were charged ranging from kidnapping, conspiring to obstruct the ensuing federal investigation and tampering with witnesses by using and threatening physical force.
The additional defendants in this case, all currently in custody:
- Breanna Lynn Sloan, 24, pleaded guilty on Nov. 17, 2022 She faces up to life in prison.
- Chloe Louise Stith, 23, pleaded guilty on May 5, 2022, to witness tampering by using and threatening physical force. She faces up to 30 years in prison.
- Sarah Michelle Humbard, 26, and David William Morris, 35 each pleaded guilty to witness tampering by using the threat of physical force. They each face a maximum of 20 years.
- Lane Ryan Bronson, 30, pleaded guilty on Nov. 21, 2022, to witness tampering by using and threatening physical force. His sentence agreement calls for 19 years in prison.
- Morgan Lee Bowman, 28, pleaded guilty on May 9, 2022, to tampering with a witness, victim, and informant by using and threatening physical force and faces a maximum of 30 years.
- Jacob Ryan Scribner, 35, pleaded guilty on Jan. 6, 2023, to conspiracy to retaliate against a witness and informant, and he is facing 20 years in prison.
- Megan Louise Detherage, 29 pleaded guilty on May 10, 2022, to misprision of a felony and faces a maximum of three years.
Charges were dismissed against the remaining two defendants pursuant to diversionary agreements.
Lane Bronson, Tre Ackerson and David Morris are all three charged with the murder of Terry Harless, 51, of Lamar.
Harless was found shot to death inside a home in Lamar on July 13, 2020, just eight days after Campbell was murdered.
All three men are charged with second degree murder for the shooting death of Harless. The cases against all three are pending.
Lane Bronson entered a guilty plea in the case, but in January of 2022, Bronson filed a request to withdraw his guilty plea in the case.
In his letter to the Barton County Judge, Bronson said his main concern was to “get his plea withdrawn before the D.O.J. makes a decision and then proceed with resigning [sic] the plea after the D.O.J. makes a decision.”
We will continue to follow these cases through sentencing.
