KKK murder: Wife and stepson of 'imperial wizard' charged

The wife and stepson of a Ku Klux Klan leader found shot dead in Missouri have been charged with murder.

Frank Ancona's body was discovered by the side of a river in the town of Leadwood, about 70 miles south of St Louis. Police believe was killed in his bedroom and his body was later dumped.

His wife, Malissa Ann Ancona, 44, and her son Paul Edward Jinkerson Jr, 24, were charged with first-degree murder, tampering with physical evidence and abandonment of a corpse

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Washington County coroner Brian DeClue told Time Ancona was shot at close range with a shotgun-type firearm and there were no other shot wounds to his body.

His wife is accused of trying to destroy blood evidence and altering the crime scene in an effort to conceal the killing, the Daily Journal reports.

Ancona, who called himself an "imperial wizard", was a member of the Traditionalist American Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, which describes itself as a "White Patriotic Christian organisation that bases its roots back to the Ku Klux Klan of the early 20th century", says the BBC.

A statement signed by him and published on the group's website states: "Our mission is to preserve our White culture and heritage but also be relevant to the happenings going on in our Republic today."

Jinkerson’s attorney said he did not believe his client was involved in the killing, but declined to comment further. It "was not immediately clear if Malissa Ancona has an attorney", says The Guardian.

Both have been remanded without bail.