A North Carolina man was charged Tuesday with four counts of murder after telling authorities that he had killed his children and after sheriff’s deputies found human remains in the trunk of a vehicle in his home’s garage.

Wellington Delano Dickens III, 38, was being held without bond in the Johnston County Jail, according to the county’s sheriff’s office and court records.

Dickens had been charged earlier Tuesday in the death of one of his children, a sheriff’s office news release said. Three more murder counts were filed later in the day, records show.

At a news conference Wednesday, Sheriff Steve Bizzell explained how the incident came to his attention.

"My personal opinion is something got to him and he was just ready to give it up, ready to turn himself in and pretty much called and said, I'm here. I'm here with my little three-year-old son I killed my four children," Bizzell said.

Dickens called 911 on Monday evening and told the operator he had killed his children, the sheriff’s statement said.

Johnston County deputies responded, and as Dickens had told them, his 3-year-old son was alive inside the residence on the outskirts of Zebulon, which is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) east of Raleigh.