A man has been charged with murdering his pregnant sister and her unborn child for dismembering her body. Prosecutors have charged 23-year-old Jack Joseph Ball with two counts of second-degree murder in the death of his sister, 30-year-old Bethany Israel.
Police were called to Ball’s Lakeville, Minnesota, home last Thursday after family members became worried for Israel. Israel was 17 to 18 weeks pregnant at the time, and officers found “several dismembered body parts” belonging to her when they entered the property. Officers found several journals belonging to Ball while searching her home. The journals detailed his anger that his sister was pregnant and described her as ‘no longer innocent’.
Gruesome Act
Responding officers found Ball covered in blood after he was seen fleeing the scene. He was subsequently taken into custody and charged. According to charging documents obtained by DailyMail.com, Lakeville Police responded to a 911 call from Israel’s mother.
Family members had grown concerned when Israel hadn’t returned home after having dinner with her brother earlier that evening. The mother said she drove to the house and saw Ball hastily leaving the premises, telling officers that “he just tore out of the house.”
Upon entering the home, the family member saw a lot of blood and called 911.
Responding officers found a large pool of blood on the kitchen floor, under the sink, and on the sink cabinets. They also found a bloody saw, hatchet, and large knives covered in blood, along with Ball’s journals, as they searched the house.
As they continued to search the property, they found several dismembered body parts they believed to belong to Israel.
While searching for Ball, police received another 911 call from a resident in nearby Rosemount.
The resident said that he saw a man leave what appeared to be a body part on their front porch, as caught by their ring camera.
Brother Turns Murderer
When officers responded to the address, they found Ball in the backyard of a neighboring property. Police described Ball as being covered in blood on his head, shirt, arms, legs, and pants, with a self-inflicted knife wound across his throat.
Ball communicated with the officers, providing the date, time, and the current president’s name before being taken into custody and transported to a local hospital.
During their search of the area, officers found more dismembered body parts believed to belong to Israel.
The Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office determined the cause of death to be “complex homicidal violence.”
Neighbor Cindy Bond, who lives across the street, told KSTP, “My husband heard a female scream. Then a minute later, there was shouting and a car peeling off.”
On Tuesday, Ball appeared via video conference from the hospital in Dakota County District Court. Judge Bryce Ehrman set his bail at $2 million without conditions and $1 million with conditions.
