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RANGER, Ga. - A jealous ex-husband shot three former in-laws to death with a rifle and strangled his infant daughter, then kidnapped three little girls and fled in a stolen sport utility vehicle, authorities said Thursday.
The girls were found unharmed Thursday night after a police chase on Interstate 75 near the Georgia-Tennessee line, about 50 miles north of where the killings occurred 24 hours earlier, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
The suspect, Jerry William Jones, shot himself in the face, GBI spokesman John Bankhead said. He was in critical condition, said Jan Powell, a spokeswoman with Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga, Tenn. The three girls were in good condition and were staying at the hospital overnight for observation, she said.
The children were Peeler and Jones' children - Brandy Jones, 4, and Tammy Jones, 3 - and Peeler's daughter from a previous relationship, Brittany Phelps, 10.
The victims were found dead in two homes down the street from each other in the rural Georgia town 55 miles north of Atlanta.
Authorities said Jones, 31, has a long criminal history, including convictions for burglary and auto theft.
Jones called his estranged common-law wife, Melissa Peeler, late Wednesday and told her of the killings, adding that he would "start killing the kids one by one" if she alerted authorities, according to her brother-in-law.
Peeler was in Oregon, where she had been since the Christmas holidays with her boyfriend, leaving the children with her parents and sisters. She notified police after getting the phone call.
Peeler's parents, Tom and Nola Blaylock, were found shot to death in one home. In the other house, authorities found Peeler's sister, Georgia Bradley, 32, shot to death, while Jones' 10-month-old daughter by Peeler, Harley, was apparently strangled.
Bankhead said the crime scenes indicated that the killer was "very methodical."
"This wasn't quick. He clearly took his time," Bankhead said.