Man and his 2 small kids found in storage unit with dismembered wife's body

OLATHE, Kan. -- (WDAF) -- During a preliminary hearing Tuesday, Justin Rey testified that he cut up the body of his wife, Jessica Rey, at a Kansas City, Mo. hotel in October 2017.

Rey, 36, initially said his wife died in childbirth but also told investigators she died by suicide. Court documents say Rey spent two days with her body in the hotel before dismembering her. Police believe Rey's children were in the hotel room as he did so.

Investigators later found him and two small children with his wife's remains in a cooler at a Lenexa storage unit. He said he was taking the remains back to Arizona for burial.

Rey is charged with two counts of aggravated child endangerment and two counts of contributing to a child's misconduct in Johnson County. In court Tuesday, Rey pleaded not guilty to the charges. In Jackson County, he is also charged with abandonment of a corpse. Rey isn't charged in his wife's killing.