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4 charged in connection with burned body found in West Alton

All four were charged with tampering with evidence and abandonment of corpse, and one man was charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action.
(Left to right) Brandon Jackson, Brian Jackson, Raven Bennett and Gabriell Ward were charged in connection with a body found burned in West Alton.

WEST ALTON, Mo. — Two men and two women are facing charges after police said they were involved in the burning of a body found in West Alton, Missouri.

Brandon Jackson, 33, was charged with second-degree murder, tampering with evidence, abandonment of a corpse and armed criminal action, and three others were charged with tampering with evidence and abandonment of a corpse in connection with the death of Wilbert J. Irving.

Police said the remains were found Tuesday morning near the Maple Island Access. They were identified as Irving — a Spanish Lake man — the next day.

On Thursday, charges were filed in the case. Charging documents say Jackson and his wife Raven Bennett lived in Irving's basement. The documents say Jackson was arguing with Irving at the home when he shot Irving four times. Bennett and another woman — Gabriell Ward — were at the home during the shooting, and helped move the body to the garage.

Documents said they then called Jackson's brother Brian Jackson. They bought gasoline and loaded Irving's body into the back of his own cab and drove off.

When they arrived at Melvin Price Access Road in West Alton, they took the body out and burned it, charging documents said. The documents also say they abandoned the man's cab at a different location.

Brandon Jackson was charged with second-degree murder, tampering with evidence, abandonment of a corpse and armed criminal action. His bond was set at $500,000. The other three people — Brian Jackson, Gabriell Ward and Raven Bennett — were all charged with tampering with evidence and abandonment of a corpse. Their bonds were all set at $100,000.

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