Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine confirmed there were marijuana grow operations at three of the four crime scenes where eight family members were fatally shot in rural Ohio.
At a press conference Sunday DeWine said the murders were premeditated and sophisticated.
“This was a pre-planned execution of eight individuals. It was a sophisticated operation,” DeWine said.
DeWine added that the investigation into who killed the members of the Rhoden family will most likely be lengthy.
“Those that carried it out were doing anything they could to hinder the investigation and their prosecution.”
Pike County Sheriff Charles Reader also warning residents who felt they were in danger to “to be armed.”
Investigators are still trying to find out who targeted the tight-knit family known in the community as hard working and why.
READ MORE: ‘There’s blood all over the house’: 911 caller in Ohio
Kayla Hay said she got to know one of the victims, 37-year-old Dana Rhoden, when they both worked as nurse’s aides at a nursing home. Hay said she was shocked and saddened when she heard Rhoden was among those killed.
“I’ve never heard her say anything about being frightened or concerned about anything bad happening,” said Hay, who described Rhoden as outgoing and friendly.
“She was always in a good mood and was very bright, both in her personality and her intelligence,” Hay said.
All of the victims were members of the Rhoden family. The others were identified 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; 20-year-old Clarence “Frankie” Rhoden; 20-year-old Hannah Gilley; and 19-year-old Hanna Rhoden.
Get breaking National news
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 baby was 4- or 5-days old, authorities said. The newborn, Hannah Gilley’s 6-month-old baby and one other small child were not hurt.
WATCH: Police continue manhunt in slaying of 8 family members in Ohio
A search for the killer or killers continued Sunday, and investigators said they had interviewed more than 30 people.
WATCH: Authorities still trying to figure out Ohio family mass killing
Robin Waddell, who owns the Big Bear Lake Family Resort just south of Piketon, said Christopher Rhoden often did work for him as a carpenter and helped out with his excavation business. He said Rhoden was a nice guy whose kids sometimes visited him while he was working.
“It’s a large family,” Waddell said. “There’s a lot of them and they’ve been in this community for generations. So this is affecting a lot of people.”
Kendra Jordan, 20, said she often worked nights at a nursing home with Hanna Rhoden and described her as outgoing, funny and always smiling.
READ MORE: 8 dead in ‘execution-style’ mass killing in rural Ohio, killer remains on loose
“If you were having a bad day, she’d be the first one to come up to you to question you about what was going on,” Jordan said. “She was amazing.”
Todd Beekman, who owns an outdoors shop a few miles from the crime scenes, said at least one customer came in to stock up on ammunition after hearing about the shootings. But Beekman and others hanging out there midday Saturday said they weren’t concerned for their own safety because it’s an area where residents know and look out for each other.
“The word spread pretty fast, as it does in any rural area,” Beekman said. “Everybody’s kind of their own brother’s keeper down here.”
Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich called the slayings “a horrible set of murders” in a CBS interview Saturday. He said he was confident the perpetrators would be found and “justice will be delivered to them.”
The exact timing of the shootings remains unclear. Authorities got the first 911 call shortly before 8 a.m. Friday; the second came several hours later from another location.
Two of the crime scenes are within walking distance of each other along a sparsely populated, winding road that leads into wooded hills from a rural highway. The third residence is more than a mile away, and the fourth home is on a different road, at least a 10-minute drive away, said the investigation’s leader, Benjamin Suver of the state Bureau of Criminal Investigations.
Authorities refused to discuss many details of the crime, including the search operations.
Officials said a Cincinnati-area businessman put up a $25,000 reward for information leading to the capture and conviction of the killer or killers.
*With files from The Associated Press
Comments