Woman charged with evidence tampering in death of boyfriend's mom

Ex-husband says he spoke with Kelly Oberacker in days surrounding murder

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 33-year-old woman is charged with evidence tampering in connection with the death of a Jacksonville woman, according to Duval County court records. 

Kelly Oberacker, who was arrested Sept. 11, is the girlfriend of 42-year-old Jacob Chavers, according to her ex-husband.

Chavers was arrested that same day on a charge of second-degree murder in connection with the killing of his mother, 72-year-old Janice Hay, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. 

Investigators said Chavers used a hammer to attack his mother, who died, and then continued to live in her Westside apartment with her body. Kelly Oberacker's arrest report stated that she also admitted to continuing to live in the apartment after the killing. 

Police said they found Hay's body during a well-being check Sept. 11 at the West Creek Apartments on 103rd Street, and Chavers and Kelly Oberacker were taken into custody about 3 miles away from the complex.

William Oberacker, Kelly Oberacker's ex-husband, as well as Hay's neighbors, identified Kelly Oberacker as Chaver's girlfriend.

William Oberacker, who lives in Ohio, said he and Kelly Oberacker have been divorced for a few years, but he still keeps in touch with her because they have a 7-year-old daughter together.

Since their divorce, Kelly Oberacker has been in jail on drug charges, as well as bank fraud and car theft charges in connection with an alleged multistate rental car and bank fraud scheme, according to Duval County jail records and court records.

William Oberacker told News4Jax that he talked with his ex-wife during the days surrounding Hay's death.

"On the 5th of September at approximately 11:55 p.m. is when Kelly first contacted me that she had been kicked out of Ms. Hay's home," William Oberacker said.

During that call, she asked for money, he said.

"She asked for a hotel room for the night for her and Jake," William Oberacker said.

Considering that his ex-wife previously faced drug charges, William Oberacker said he refused to send her money. 

On Sept. 8, William Oberacker said Kelly Oberacker asked for money again. On Sept. 10, William Oberacker said he got a call from Kelly Oberacker's father, asking him to send her money. William Oberacker said he was hesitant, but did it. 

"I Western Union-ed her $150, but under the premise that it was supposed to be for a hotel room," he said,

On Sept. 11, William Oberacker said his ex-wife called again, asking for $20. 

"It was very quiet. There were no outside noises, so she was inside some place and I heard Jake’s voice real quick, but it wasn’t close to her. It was further away like he was answering a door and then she hung up the phone," he said.

That was the last time William Oberacker said he heard from Kelly Oberacker. Out of suspicion, he said he looked at the JSO inmate page and saw his ex-wife had been booked in on a charge of tampering with evidence. He said he also saw Chavers had been booked into the jail on a second-degree murder charge.

"I was shocked," William Oberacker said. 

He said it was Sept. 12 when he found out the charges were in connection with the death of Chaver's mother.

"It was chilling," William Oberacker said. "To imagine her sitting there, inside the same areas with the corpse of her boyfriend's mother -- that was chilling. That was absolutely, uh."

William Oberacker said he hopes his ex-wife's latest arrest will be a turning point for her and encourage her to get clean so she can one day be reunited with their daughter.

As of Tuesday evening, online jail records show, Kelly Oberacker and Chavers remained in the Duval County jail.


About the Author:

Corley Peel is a Texas native and Texas Tech graduate who covered big stories in Joplin, Missouri, Tulsa, Oklahoma and Jacksonville, Florida before returning to the Lone Star State. When not reporting, Corley enjoys hot yoga, Tech Football, and finding the best tacos in town.