One unnamed victim shot nine times
By Mark Carpenter – People’s Defender
Preliminary autopsy findings were released today by the Hamilton County Coroner’s Office in the Pike County murders. The findings paint a grisly picture, with the revelation that all but one victim was shot more than once, with two victims being shot five times and one victim suffering nine gunshot wounds.
The Ohio Attorney General’s office also announced that 61 more pieces of evidence have been collected for examination, bringing the total to 79 after the 18 items already processed. The Attorney General’s office also reported that more search warrants have been served but did not say how many or at what locations.
The bodies of the victims were also to be released on Tuesday from the Hamilton County Coroner’s Office to the Pike County Coroner’s Office, though only one body had been released as of 2 p.m. EST. Three funeral homes will be handling the bodies, Davis Funeral Home in West Portsmouth will handle six of them, while Botkins in Piketon and Crocket Reed of South Shore, Ky., will each handle one.
More than 300 tips in the case have been called in and anyone with any possible information should call 855-BCI-OHIO or 740-947-2111.
Make sure to pick up your April 27 issue of The People’s Defender to get reporter Pat Beech’s in-depth coverage of the story.
