adminPiketon – Eight people were found dead on Friday at four crime scenes in rural Ohio, with most of them having been shot to death, authorities said. Seven of the victims, including two children, were slain in “execution-style killings” at three homes along a rural road, authorities said.
An out-of-breath caller who found two of the eight slain members of an Ohio family told a 911 dispatcher in a quavering voice that “there’s blood all over the house”.
“I think my brother-in-law’s dead,” she said, her voice rising as she adds later that it looks like someone has “beat the crap out of them”.
“I think they’re both dead,” she said before breaking down into sobs, according to one of two 911 call recordings released on Saturday by the state attorney general’s office.
The calls were released a day after eight family members were found dead with gunshots to the head at four properties in rural southern Ohio.
Authorities continued the scramble to determine who targeted that clan and why. Investigators said they interviewed more than 30 people in hopes of finding leads in the deaths of the seven adults and the teenage boy whose bodies were found Friday at homes southwest of Piketon. They completed work at the crime scene Saturday.
“It’s a very active and ongoing investigation,” said Lisa Hackley, a spokesperson for Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. “We’re looking for the person or persons who did this.”
The victims, all members of the Rhoden family, were identified on Saturday as 40-year-old Christopher Rhoden Sr; his 16-year-old son, Christopher Rhoden Jr.; 44-year-old Kenneth Rhoden; 38-year-old Gary Rhoden; 37-year-old Dana Rhoden; 20-year-old Clarence “Frankie” Rhoden; 20-year-old Hannah Gilley; and 19-year-old Hanna Rhoden.
It appeared some of the family members were killed as they slept, including Hanna Rhoden, who was in bed with her newborn baby nearby, authorities said. The infant was 4 or 5 days old, authorities said. The baby and two other small children were not hurt.
Authorities said none of the injuries appeared self-inflicted and they believed there was at least one assailant. A search for the perpetrator or perpetrators continued on Saturday as surviving members of the Rhoden family were urged to take precautions. Authorities offered them help, and they recommended that area residents also be wary.
Phil Fulton, the pastor of Union Hill Church up the road from where some of the victims were found, described the family as close-knit and hardworking. He said they were previously part of his congregation, though not recently.
“We’re just doing everything we can to reach out to the family to show them love and comfort,” Fulton said.
Reading a statement from the family, Kimberly Newman of the Ohio Crisis Response Team, told reporters gathered alongside the barricaded road that leads to some of the crime scenes that they appreciated “the outpouring of prayers and support”.
“They ask that you continue to keep them in your prayers,” Newman said. – AFP
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