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Authorities: Prosecuting Pike County massacre case could last years

Authorities: Prosecuting Pike County massacre case could last years
WEBVTT WAGNER FAMILY METICULOUSLY PLANNED THE RHODEN MURDERS AS A GROUP MONTHS IN ADVANCE. BILLY, ANGELA AND THEIR SONS, GEORGE AND JAKE. PROSECUTORS SAY THE 4 STUDIED THEIR HABITS, THEIR ROUTINES KNEW WHERE THEY SLEPT, CONSPIRING TOGETHER TO WIPE OUT PEOPLE THEY KNEW. >> WE BELIEVE WE HAVE THE KILLERS. WE DON바카라 게임 웹사이트T BELIEVE THAT ANYBODY ELSE WAS INVOLVED. WE HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO EVIDECE THAT ANYBODY ELSE IS INVOLVED. AND WE WANT TO MAKE THAT VERY CLEAR TO THE PEOPLE OF PIKE COUNTY JOHN THEY WOULD NOT DELVE INTO MOTIVE OTHER THAN TO SAY THE CUSTODY OF A CHILD PLAYED A PART IN WHAT HAPPENED. A SEARCH OF THE WAGNER PROPERTY ATTRACTED SUSPICION IN THESE PARTS. SURVIVING FAMILY MEMBERS MET WITH INVESTIGATORS PERIODICALLY. THEY HAD QUESTIONS JUST LIKE YOU GUYS HAVE. AND THEY WOULD ASK ME. AND LOOKING INTO THE EYES OF SEVERAL THEM, THEY KNEW THAT I HAD THE ANSWERS BUT I COULDN바카라 게임 웹사이트T PROVIDE IT TO THEM TO SAVE THE INTEGRITY FOR THE CASE JOHN: THE LARGEST AND LONGEST CASE OF ITS KIND IN OHIO HISTORY. COLD-BLOODED KILLINGS UNDER THE COVER OF DARKNESS. EIGHT VICTIMS, THIRTY-TWO SHOTS, NO WITNESSES. THE SHERIFF SAYS HE RECEIVED NO DIRECT THREAT FROM THE WAGNERS, BUT TOLD MEDIA HE WAS TAKING NO CHANCES. >> I바카라 게임 웹사이트VE SEEN THEIR WORK. I KNOW WHAT THEY바카라 게임 웹사이트RE CAPABLE OF. SO, WE바카라 게임 웹사이트VE BEEN VERY CAUTIOUS. MAKING SURE THAT SECURITY PLANS HAVE BEEN IN PLACE AT MY HOME AND OTHERS JOHN: WE바카라 게임 웹사이트RE TOLD BY AUTHORITIES THE WAGNERS WERE CAREFUL IN THEIR COVER-UP, BUT NOT CAREFUL ENOUGH LEAVING TRACES, PARTS OF SILENCERS, TAMPERING WITH PHONES AND SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS. THE FINAL BIT OF PHYSICAL EVIDENCE SURFACED TWO WEEKS AGO. NO ONE IS IDENTIFYING WHAT THAT IS. >> I DON바카라 게임 웹사이트T WANT ANYBODY TO THINK THE LAST PIECE OF EVIDENCE, YOU KNOW, WAS OK THAT DID IT. IT WAS SIGNIFICANT. WE HAD OTHER SIGNIFICANT PIECES OF EVIDENCE AS WELL. JOHN MIKE, DID YOU KNOW IN YOUR HEART THAT YOU WOULD GET TO THIS DA >> YEAH. I NEVER HAD A DOUBT, EVER A DOUBT THAT WE WOULD GET HERE. JOHN: ORIGINALLY, THERE WAS TALK OF DRUGS AS THE REASON FOR THE EXECUTION-STYLE KILLINGS. DEWINE CONCEDES THERE WAS AN UNDERCURRENT OF DRUGS, BUT NO EVIDENCE OF A DRUG-RELATED MOTIVE. THE LAWYER FOR THE WAGNERS SAYS THEY LOOK FORWARD TO VINDICATION, A THOROUGH VETTING OF ALL THE FACTS AND DISCOVERY OF THE TRUE CULPRITS LIVE IN PIKE COUNTY, JOHN LONDON, 바카라게임 NEW
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Authorities: Prosecuting Pike County massacre case could last years
Prosecuting an Ohio family of four arrested in the gruesome slayings of eight people from another family could take years to conclude, a county prosecutor said as the first break in the more than two-year-old case was announced.Tuesday's announcement marked the culmination of a massive investigative effort that began after seven adults and a teenage boy were found shot in the head at four separate homes in April 2016. The killings terrified local residents and spawned rumors that it was a drug hit, but prosecutors suggested the attack had stemmed from a custody dispute.The investigation is one of the most complicated and extensive in state history, with enormous numbers of witnesses and a huge amount of evidence, said Pike County Prosecutor Rob Junk."There is a lot of hard work ahead of us. I cannot emphasize that enough. An indictment is only the beginning of the case," Junk said Tuesday, adding that the case may have to be moved from Pike County because of the pre-trial publicity.Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine said a grand jury indicted the four members of the Wagner family on aggravated murder charges. Police arrested George "Billy" Wagner III, 47; his wife, 48-year-old Angela Wagner; and his sons George Wagner, 27, and Edward "Jake" Wagner, 26. They could be sentenced to death if convicted, DeWine said.DeWine gave scant detail about why the victims were killed, but said the custody of a young child played a role. Edward Wagner was the long-time former boyfriend of 19-year-old Hanna Rhoden, one of the eight victims, and shared custody of their daughter at the time of the massacre.Edward Wagner was also charged with unlawful sexual conduct with a minor for having sexual contact with Rhoden when she was 15 years old and he was 20 years old, DeWine's office said.Tony Rhoden, who lost two brothers in the killings, said the family was still processing the news."We just don't know what to think," Rhoden told the Columbus Dispatch. "It's a lot to take in."The Wagner family lived near the scenes of the killings about 60 miles (97 kilometers) south of Columbus. They moved to Kenai, Alaska, in June 2017, then returned to Ohio this past spring.Kelly Cinereski, an Alaskan pastor and friend of the family, told the Dayton Daily 온라인 바카라 게임 he was shocked by their arrests."These people wept over dogs, I can't imagine them taking people's lives," he said.The mothers of Angela Wagner and George Wagner also were arrested in Ohio and charged with misleading investigators.Both Edward Wagner and Angela Wagner previously told the Cincinnati Enquirer that they were not involved in the killings.Angela Wagner said in an email to the newspaper that what happened was devastating and Hanna Rhoden was like a daughter to her. Wagner also told The Enquirer that her husband, George, and Christopher Rhoden Sr. were more like brothers than friends.John Clark, a lawyer who has been representing the Wagners, has said previously that four of the Wagner family members provided laptops, phones and DNA samples to investigators, and agreed to be interviewed about the slayings."We look forward to the day when the true culprits will be discovered and brought to justice for this terrible tragedy," Clark said in a statement Tuesday.The victims were identified as 40-year-old Christopher Rhoden Sr.; his ex-wife, 37-year-old Dana Rhoden; their three children, 20-year-old Clarence "Frankie" Rhoden, 16-year-old Christopher Jr., and 19-year-old Hanna; Clarence Rhoden's fiancée, 20-year-old Hannah Gilley; Christopher Rhoden Sr.'s brother, 44-year-old Kenneth Rhoden; and a cousin, 38-year-old Gary Rhoden. Hanna Rhoden's days-old baby girl, another baby and a young child were unharmed.

Prosecuting an Ohio family of four arrested in the gruesome slayings of eight people from another family could take years to conclude, a county prosecutor said as the first break in the more than two-year-old case was announced.

Tuesday's announcement marked the culmination of a massive investigative effort that began after seven adults and a teenage boy were found shot in the head at four separate homes in April 2016. The killings terrified local residents and spawned rumors that it was a drug hit, but prosecutors suggested the attack had stemmed from a custody dispute.

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The investigation is one of the most complicated and extensive in state history, with enormous numbers of witnesses and a huge amount of evidence, said Pike County Prosecutor Rob Junk.

"There is a lot of hard work ahead of us. I cannot emphasize that enough. An indictment is only the beginning of the case," Junk said Tuesday, adding that the case may have to be moved from Pike County because of the pre-trial publicity.

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine said a grand jury indicted the four members of the Wagner family on aggravated murder charges. Police arrested George "Billy" Wagner III, 47; his wife, 48-year-old Angela Wagner; and his sons George Wagner, 27, and Edward "Jake" Wagner, 26. They could be sentenced to death if convicted, DeWine said.

DeWine gave scant detail about why the victims were killed, but said the custody of a young child played a role. Edward Wagner was the long-time former boyfriend of 19-year-old Hanna Rhoden, one of the eight victims, and shared custody of their daughter at the time of the massacre.

Edward Wagner was also charged with unlawful sexual conduct with a minor for having sexual contact with Rhoden when she was 15 years old and he was 20 years old, DeWine's office said.

Tony Rhoden, who lost two brothers in the killings, said the family was still processing the news.

"We just don't know what to think," Rhoden told the Columbus Dispatch. "It's a lot to take in."

The Wagner family lived near the scenes of the killings about 60 miles (97 kilometers) south of Columbus. They moved to Kenai, Alaska, in June 2017, then returned to Ohio this past spring.

Kelly Cinereski, an Alaskan pastor and friend of the family, told the Dayton Daily 온라인 바카라 게임 he was shocked by their arrests.

"These people wept over dogs, I can't imagine them taking people's lives," he said.

The mothers of Angela Wagner and George Wagner also were arrested in Ohio and charged with misleading investigators.

Both Edward Wagner and Angela Wagner previously told the Cincinnati Enquirer that they were not involved in the killings.

Angela Wagner said in an email to the newspaper that what happened was devastating and Hanna Rhoden was like a daughter to her. Wagner also told The Enquirer that her husband, George, and Christopher Rhoden Sr. were more like brothers than friends.

John Clark, a lawyer who has been representing the Wagners, has said previously that four of the Wagner family members provided laptops, phones and DNA samples to investigators, and agreed to be interviewed about the slayings.

"We look forward to the day when the true culprits will be discovered and brought to justice for this terrible tragedy," Clark said in a statement Tuesday.

The victims were identified as 40-year-old Christopher Rhoden Sr.; his ex-wife, 37-year-old Dana Rhoden; their three children, 20-year-old Clarence "Frankie" Rhoden, 16-year-old Christopher Jr., and 19-year-old Hanna; Clarence Rhoden's fiancée, 20-year-old Hannah Gilley; Christopher Rhoden Sr.'s brother, 44-year-old Kenneth Rhoden; and a cousin, 38-year-old Gary Rhoden. Hanna Rhoden's days-old baby girl, another baby and a young child were unharmed.