KODY MAYNARD - Aged 11 years (RIP) & SARAH MAYNARD - Aged 13 years (ALIVE) - Howard, Ohio (USA)

NBC4i

18 November 2010

Source: Bodies Of Missing Boy, Women Found‎

Eight days after being reported missing, sources confirm that the bodies of missing Knox County boy and two women have been found dead.
The bodies were found in the northwest part of the county above Apple Valley Thursday, sources told NBC 4.

According to the Knox County Sheriff's Office, Thursday's regularly-scheduled news conference was rescheduled for 4 p.m.

Tina Herrmann, 32, her 10-year-old son, Kody, and Herrman's friend, 41-year-old Stephanie Sprang were reported missing Nov. 10.

Also reported missing was Herrmann's 13-year-old daughter, Sarah Maynard, who was found Sunday in the basement of a home on Columbus Street in Mount Vernon.

http://www2.nbc4i.com/news/2010/nov/18/5/bodies-missing-boy-women-found-ar-295449/

Fox News

18 November 2010

Three Bodies Found in Ohio, Believed to Be Those of Missing Family‎

The bodies of a boy and two women have been found in Ohio's Knox County, WCMH-TV reported Thursday.

It is believed that the bodies are those of 32-year-old Tina Hermann, her 10-year-old son, Kody, and family friend, 41-year-old Stephanie Sprang, who have been missing since Nov. 10.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/11/18/bodies-ohio-believed-missing-family/

The Associated Press

18 November 2010

Bodies found in Ohio near where 3 missing lived‎

Bodies were found in a rural central Ohio county where a mother, her young son and a family friend disappeared more than a week ago, a coroner said Thursday, though she did not say whether the bodies are the three who are missing.

Knox County coroner Jennifer Ogle told The Mount Vernon News that bodies were found in a rural area, and footage from television news helicopters showed emergency vehicles parked at the end of a field near thick woods and workers walking to a green tarp set down among the trees.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h6U2BrMotDw2StsJDBE1r8oHcyFQ?docId=ed6e7941069d4f0c9a2a1abd1c7f1eb2

Toledo Blade

18 November 2010

Bodies of three missing people found in Knox County
Authorities to hold afternoon news conference

http://toledoblade.com/article/20101118/NEWS16/101119520/0/NEWS10

CBS News

18 November 2010

Bodies Possibly Linked to Ohio Disappearance‎
Victim's Relative Says Police Find Bodies of Three People amid Weeklong Search for Missing Family Members

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/11/18/national/main7067647.shtml

Reuters

18 November 2010

Bodies found in Ohio county where three missing‎

.... The Knox County Sheriff, who has led the investigation of the missing trio, scheduled a news conference for later on Thursday.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6AH5V620101118

We will await official confirmation before moving this case!!!

Kody is stilll listed as missing on Missing Kids!!!

NBC 4i

18 November 2010

Bodies Of Missing Boy, Women Found
Bodies Found In Garbage Bags In Hollow Tree

Eight days after being reported missing, the bodies of a boy and two women have been found in a hollow tree in Knox County Thursday.

The bodies were found in the area of Yankee Street and Waterford Road northwest of Fredericktown, sources told NBC 4 Thursday.

Watch the news conference live on nbc4i.com. Click Here.

Knox County Sheriff David Barber said at a news conference, "Today this investigation took a major turn. We have the discovered and recovered the remains of Kody Maynard, Stephanie Sprang and Tina Herrmann. The discovery of these bodies was as the result of information provided by Matthew Hoffman. The bodies were located in a wooded area inside garbage bags in a hollow tree off of Yankee Street, which is west of Fredericktown in Knox County. Mr. Hoffman remains in jail on a kidnapping charge."

Barber said information obtained from Hoffman early Thursday led investigators to the location of the victims' remains. Barber said the general area had been searched before, but not the specific location of the hollow tree.

http://www2.nbc4i.com/news/2010/nov/18/30/bodies-missing-boy-women-found-ar-295449/

Kody's details have also been removed from Missing Kids Website!!

Associated Press

23rd November 2010

By ANN SANNER

Family of slain Ohio mother, boy: Thanks to nation

GAHANNA, Ohio -- The family of a mother and son who were stabbed to death and whose remains were found in a tree in central Ohio are thanking the nation for its "outpouring of love, prayers and support."

The statement was released to the media Tuesday by relatives of Tina Herrmann and her 11-year-old son, Kody Maynard, as a visitation service started at a church in Gahanna, a Columbus suburb.

The remains of Herrmann, her son and another woman were found last week in a hollow tree trunk in a wildlife preserve about a 20-mile drive from Herrmann's home in Howard.

The discovery came after a weeklong search. Herrmann's daughter had been found four days earlier, bound and gagged in the basement of a nearby home.

The homeowner has been charged with kidnapping.

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2010/11/23/general-us-bodies-in-tree_8160102.html

CBS News

November 22, 2010 11:33 AM

Family of Missing Ohio Girl Stabbed to Death, Dismembered Says Coroner



MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (CBS/WBNS/AP) Two women and an 11-year-old boy were stabbed to death and dismembered before their bodies were stuffed in garbage bags and lowered into a hollow tree, an Ohio coroner said Saturday.

Preliminary autopsy reports indicate that Tina Herrman, her son, Kody Maynard, and her friend Stephanie Sprang were stabbed several times with a knife in the back and chest Nov. 10, according to Knox County Coroner Jennifer Ogle.

"They were then placed inside large plastic garbage bags and later lowered into the hollow of a large tree," Ogle said in a statement. The coroner said that there were no signs of sexual assault and authorities were still working to determine the exact location of each person's death, according to CBS affiliate WBNS. A final report was expected to be completed in 6-8 weeks.

The remains of the family's dog, a miniature pinscher named Tanner, were also found in the tree with the bodies, said family friend Joe Pejsa.

Authorities discovered the bodies Thursday, four days after investigators found Sarah Maynard, the mother's 13-year-old daughter, bound and gagged, but alive, in the basement of an unemployed tree-cutter, Matthew Hoffman.

Hoffman, 30, has not been charged with murder, but is being held on $1 million bond, accused of kidnapping Maynard and keeping her in the basement of his home, about a 15-mile drive from the wildlife area where the bodies were found.

Authorities said Hoffman gave them information that helped investigators locate the bodies. He is the only suspect in the killings.

Investigators are unsure why the four were targeted and have yet to find a motive in the killings, but the sheriff has suggested that Hoffman, who spent six years in a Colorado prison for arson and other charges, had been watching them for some time.

The deaths have left the small central Ohio community in a state of shock. Hundreds attended a vigil Thursday night to pay their respects to the victims and their families.

"Our entire community has been wounded in this tragedy and words can't describe the sorrow felt by all...," Ogle said, according to CNN.

The 60-foot-tall American beech tree where the bodies were found was cut down Friday out of respect for the victims' families.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20023549-504083.html

Fox News

Published November 23, 2010

Victims whose remains were found in tree mourned

GAHANNA, Ohio – Mourners carried sunflowers and baseballs as they left a visitation service Tuesday for a mother and son who were stabbed to death and dismembered in central Ohio, and a family friend who died with them was remembered as full of life and always smiling.

Friends of Tina Herrmann and her 11-year-old son, Kody Maynard, said there were two closed caskets and mounds of flowers at the service at a church in Gahanna, about 40 miles southwest of their home in Howard, where they were killed Nov. 10. The baseballs bore Kody's name and dates of birth and death.

A co-worker of Herrmann said that among those in the reception line was Herrmann's 13-year-old daughter, Sarah Maynard, who was reported missing on the day of the killings, along with her mother, brother and family friend Stephanie Sprang. The girl was found bound and gagged in the basement of a home in Mount Vernon, about 10 miles from the site of the stabbings, four days before the remains of the others were discovered hidden in a hollow tree.

"She was being very, very strong," said Teresa Partlow, 32, of Walhonding. "I couldn't imagine being that strong."

Outside a crowded funeral home in Mount Vernon, cars were parked on both sides of the street for a couple of blocks as evening visitation for Sprang began.

Mourners looked at photo and video montages of Sprang, 41, as a girl with a baton, in high school with friends, in her wedding dress, serving birthday cake to one of her children, singing karaoke with her father and laughing as she was buried in sand on a beach.

Sprang collected miniature lighthouses as a hobby, and a memorial card and the slideshow both featured images of her with a lighthouse.

Among the mourners earlier in the day was Sheriff David Barber, whose office handled the search for the missing.

Another mourner, Randall Alicie, who saw Sprang three or four times a month at the karaoke concerts he puts on in bars and clubs in Knox County, said she was fond of rock and party songs and often sang "Summer Nights" as a duet with her father.

"She was always smiling. Always having a good time. Never seen her down," said Alicie. "She was a character, a real character. Full of life. Enjoyed living."

Dee Hall said she wanted to pay her respects for the victims, the youngest of whom attended school with her grandson.

"It's part of the healing process for this community," she said. "We don't experience stuff like this every day here. I'd like to believe that something this horrific has brought this community closer together."

Subtle signs of the community's reaction to the slayings dot the small city.

"Our Prayers Are With The Families," read a sign at a Hardee's restaurant up the street from the funeral home. A sign at a nearby Dairy Queen where Sprang worked listed the names of Sarah and Sprang's children and said "We love you."

The search for the four began after authorities said an unusual amount of blood was found Nov. 11 in the home of the 32-year-old Herrmann, where Sprang had been visiting.

Officials said Sarah Maynard was found three days later in the home of Matthew Hoffman and that he later gave information that led investigators to the remains of the others in a wildlife preserve. Hoffman, a 30-year-old unemployed tree-cutter, has been charged with one count of kidnapping and is being held in the Knox County jail on $1 million bond.

Authorities say he is the only suspect in the killings, but he has not been charged in the deaths. His attorney has declined comment.

Authorities have not speculated on a motive. The sheriff has suggested that Hoffman, who spent six years in a Colorado prison for arson and other charges, had been watching them for some time.

The families of Herrmann and Maynard issued a statement to members of the media at the start of visitation on Tuesday, thanking law enforcement, members of the community, relatives, friends and others.

"We wish to take a moment to thank the nation for the outpouring of love, prayers and support that you all continue to provide," the statement said. "To the residents of Knox County who grieve with us as well, we would like to share that all of you who are touched by this tragedy, whether directly or indirectly, are in our hearts and prayers."

The family also offered paper baseballs on which mourners could draw or write memories or condolences.

Herrmann was remembered by friends as full of laughter and life, and Partlow called her a "joker" who would flick rubber bands at work and sing "Leaving on a Jet Plane."

She said she has lost sleep since the four were first reported missing, and that when she pulls into work at Dairy Queen she still expects to see Herrmann's truck in the parking lot.

"It's like a really bad nightmare that I haven't woken up from," she said. "We don't understand why something like this happened. It just doesn't make sense."

In Mount Vernon, Dairy Queen manager Valerie Haythorn, who alerted police to the blood in Herrmann's home after she didn't show up for work, said the restaurant would be closed during the day Wednesday so employees could attend funerals.

About 10 miles away in the community near where Herrmann lived, purple ribbons hung from mailboxes and light posts. At her house, there was little outward sign of an overnight porch fire, which authorities were investigating as suspicious. Some strips of siding to the right of the front door were buckling slightly.

A makeshift memorial remained at a tree in her yard where people had placed purple balloons, white crosses, several stuffed bears, candles and a wind chime. "Watch Over the Maynard Family," read a handwritten sign on the tree.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/11/23/chief-suspicious-ohio-home-slain/#ixzz18quOukbS

MSNBC News

24/11/2010

Fire at Ohio home where 3 were slain ruled arson
Small blaze set on porch night before visitation service for victims

HOWARD, Ohio — A fire that broke out at a Howard home where two women and an 11-year-old boy were fatally stabbed was ruled arson Wednesday, NBC station WCMH reported.

Shane Cartmill with the state fire marshal's office said specific details, including how the fire on King Beach Drive was set Monday night, would not be released immediately because of the criminal investigation.

Eastern Knox County Joint Fire District Chief Larry Stimpert told WCMH that firefighters were sent to the home of 32-year-old Tina Herrmann, where they found the porch on fire.

Stimpert said the fire was quickly contained. He said it burned the porch and melted some siding but did not extend inside the home. No one was inside the home at the time.

Herrmann, her 10-year-old son, Kody Maynard, and Herrman's friend, 41-year-old Stephanie Sprang, were reported missing Nov. 10.

Also reported missing was Herrmann's 13-year-old daughter, Sarah Maynard, who was found bound and gagged Nov. 14 in the basement of a home on Columbus Street in Mount Vernon.

Authorities say 30-year-old Matthew Hoffman, the resident of the Columbus Street home, led them to the remains of the three, which were found last Thursday in a hollow tree trunk in a wildlife preserve about 20 miles away.

Hoffman has been accused of kidnapping Sarah. Hoffman was being held on a $1 million bond on a single count of kidnapping, though more charges are expected next month.

Authorities say he is the only suspect in the killings, but he has not been charged in the deaths. His attorney has declined comment.

Authorities have not speculated on a motive. The sheriff has suggested that Hoffman, who spent six years in a Colorado prison for arson and other charges, had been watching them for some time.


Teresa Partlow holds items given to her at a visitation for Tina Herrmann and Kody Maynard at Peace Lutheran Church in Gahanna, Ohio, on Tuesday.

At a visitation service Tuesday, mourners carried sunflowers and baseballs in remembrance of Herrmann and her son and Sprang, WCMH reported.

Friends of Herrmann and Kody said there were two closed caskets and mounds of flowers at the service at a church in Gahanna. The baseballs bore Kody's name and dates of birth and death.

A co-worker of Herrmann's said that among those in the reception line was Sarah.

"She was being very, very strong," said Teresa Partlow, 32, of Walhonding. "I couldn't imagine being that strong."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40357910/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/

The Associated Press

Wednesday, November 24, 2010 at 9:34 a.m.

Fire at Ohio home where 3 were slain ruled arson

HOWARD, Ohio — Authorities say someone set a fire at an Ohio home where police say two women and an 11-year-old boy were stabbed to death before their remains were placed in a tree.

The State Fire Marshal's office has determined that the Monday night fire at the Howard home of Tina Herrmann was arson.

The office said in a statement Wednesday that specific details would not be released, including how the fire was started.

A local fire chief has said the blaze burned the porch and melted some siding but was contained quickly and did not spread inside the house.

The remains of Herrmann, her son and a family friend were found last week stuffed into a hollow tree at a nature preserve about 20 miles from the home. Funerals were scheduled for Wednesday.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/nov/24/fire-at-ohio-home-where-3-were-slain-ruled-arson/

Mount Vernon News

December 8, 2010 12:45 pm EST

By Alan Reed

Hoffman off suicide watch at jail

MOUNT VERNON — Matthew Hoffman has recently been taken off suicide watch at the Knox County Jail, according to Bruce Malek, Hoffman’s attorney through the Knox County Public Defenders Office. Hoffman was placed on suicide watch after being taken into custody on Nov. 14 and charged with the kidnapping of Sarah Maynard.
related

Hoffman was examined by doctors from Behavioral Healthcare Partners of Central Ohio Inc., formerly known as Moundbuilders Guidance Center, on Nov. 24 with findings that resulted in the lifting of the suicide watch. An exact date of the lifting was not available.

“He has not been released into the general population,” said Malek, as Hoffman continues to be in segregation but no longer checked on every 10 minutes by jail staff.

“He has access to TV and books, but the limits and restrictions have been removed,” Malek said.

Malek stated that Hoffman continues to be represented solely by the Knox County Public Defenders Office.

Calls to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office for further details on Hoffman were unreturned at press time.

Hoffman is the prime suspect in the murder of Maynard’s mother, Tina Herrmann; her brother, Kody Maynard; and family friend, Stephanie Sprang. The investigation into the three deaths continues through the KCSO.

http://www.mountvernonnews.com/local/10/12/08/hoffman-off-suicide-watch-at-jail

The Associated Press

Dec 8, 2010

Attorney: Ohio slayings suspect off suicide watch

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The only suspect in a kidnapping and triple-slaying in a rural Ohio community is off suicide watch and maintaining a positive attitude in jail, his lawyer said Wednesday.

A grand jury that met this week did not indict Matthew Hoffman, but additional charges could come soon, defense attorney Bruce Malek said.

"I would certainly hope and expect that any indictment be brought at the earliest opportunity," Malek said. "It serves no purpose to delay that grand jury."

State and national media descended on the small Ohio city of Mount Vernon, about 50 miles east of Columbus, for a week as authorities searched for four people who disappeared from a nearby home Nov. 10. On Nov. 14, one of the missing people, 13-year-old Sarah Maynard, was found bound and gagged but alive in Hoffman's basement.

Four days later, using information provided by Hoffman through his attorneys, authorities found the dismembered bodies of Maynard's mother, Tina Herrmann; her brother, 11-year-old Kody Maynard; and Stephanie Sprang, a friend of Herrmann.

The county coroner said the three were stabbed multiple times, and their dismembered remains put in garbage bags and lowered into a hollow tree. The remains of the family dog were also found in the tree.

Malek said he expects Knox County Prosecutor John Thatcher to either call a special grand jury because of the complexity of the case or present it to a regularly scheduled grand jury early next month.

Malek said investigators are still obtaining reports and awaiting lab testing on various pieces of evidence.

Thatcher said that grand jury proceedings are secret under Ohio law and he therefore could not comment.

Hoffman had been placed on suicide watch soon after his Nov. 14 arrest. A doctor associated with a local counseling center examined Hoffman the day before Thanksgiving and determined that he could be taken off suicide watch, Malek said. The move was made a few days later.

Hoffman remains in a segregated cell but can wear a regular jail uniform, has access to books and television and isn't under constant observation, Malek said.

"Under all the circumstances I think he's doing as well as one can," Malek said. "He's maintaining a positive attitude."

Sheriff David Barber did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Malek wouldn't comment on whether, if Hoffman is charged with the slayings, he would ask that a trial be held elsewhere because of publicity. He acknowledged the high interest generated by the killings and Hoffman's arrest.

"I'm not sure there's venue that doesn't have some knowledge of the case," Malek said.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5huXCYvev3XyjMdK0L_r3IsRzjkiA?docId=9b36c15002404cf29bd8901bcfa5746f

WINK News

Dec 09, 2010 at 3:35 PM America/New_York

EXCLUSIVE - Father condemns triple murder suspect

NORTH FORT MYERS, Fla. - The man who had to bury his daughter and grandson in an Ohio triple murder speaks out for the first time.

Ray Herrmann lost his daughter, Tina, and grandson, Kody Maynard in the case that caught national attention in November.

The two's bodies, along with a family friend, were found dismembered and shoved in a tree in Ohio. Ray's 13 year old granddaughter, Sarah, was found bound and gagged in the suspect's basement.

"He don't deserve to live the way he did them," said Herrmann.

Meanwhile, Victory Lane Cafe in North Fort Myers, has scheduled a fundraiser for the family to cover $18,000 in funeral costs and to help Sarah's recovery.

"She's still going to counciling but she says she's ready to go back, she wants to get back in cheer leading and school," said Ray.

The event is set for Sunday, December 12 from noon until 6 p.m. at Victory Lane Cafe.

http://www.winknews.com/Local-Florida/2010-12-09/EXCLUSIVE-Father-condemns-triple-murder-suspect#ixzz19c57MHTv

The Associated Press

4 January 2011

Man charged in deaths of 3 found in tree in Ohio‎

An unemployed tree-cutter suspected in the deaths of three people whose dismembered bodies were found in a hollow tree has been charged with aggravated murder, burglary, kidnapping and rape, but a death sentence isn't being pursued at the wishes of the victims' families.

Matthew Hoffman could face life without the possibility of parole if convicted of killing Tina Herrmann; her son, Kody Maynard; and neighbor Stephanie Sprang, according to an indictment announced Tuesday.

The indictment alleges Hoffman committed the killings while he burglarized Herrmann's house Nov. 10 near a lakeside community about 60 miles from Columbus.

Hoffman was also charged with kidnapping a 13-year-old girl during the crime and later raping her at his home in Mount Vernon.

The Associated Press previously published the girl's name but is no longer identifying her because of the rape charge filed against Hoffman. The AP generally does not identify victims when sexual crimes are alleged.

The crimes that Hoffman is charged with could carry a possible death penalty, but Thatcher said those charges were not pursued "in accordance with the wishes of the victims' families."

Hoffman is also charged with tampering with evidence for allegedly taking clothes and bedding from Herrmann's house because he sought to remove them as possible evidence. He's also charged with abusing a corpse "because the victims' remains were not intact when recovered," Thatcher said.

Hoffman's attorney said Tuesday the charges weren't a surprise.

"There's really nothing in the indictment that came as a shock, based on what I had understood the state's position to be as to what had occurred," attorney Bruce Malek said.

He declined to comment on Thatcher's decision not to seek the death penalty.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iM04xzPf3nckrCqdNr6wtp5Gfv7g?docId=cf099845329847a8b112a9988abbe005

Associated Content

4 January 2011

Knox County, Ohio Murders: Grand Jury Indicts Hoffman on 10 Counts‎

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6180904/knox_county_ohio_murders_grand_jury.html?cat=17

BBC News

4 January 2011

Man charged in deaths of victims found in Ohio tree‎


Mr Hoffman has been charged with murder, rape, burglary and kidnapping

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12114022

The Associated Press

6 January 2011

Ohioan pleads guilty in deaths of 3 found in tree‎

An unemployed tree-cutter who broke into a home to commit "a random burglary" admitted Thursday that he killed three people who surprised him and confronted him, then stuffed their remains in a hollow tree. He also pleaded guilty to kidnapping and raping a 13-year-old girl who was with them.

Matthew Hoffman, 30, entered the plea to aggravated murder, burglary, kidnapping, rape and other charges. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the deaths of Tina Herrmann, whose home he broke into; her 11-year-old son, Kody Maynard; and neighbor Stephanie Sprang. They were stabbed, dismembered and put into garbage bags and then into the tree, prosecutors said.

"This is so sickening, Matthew, to know you even had the guts to do this," the girl said in a statement read aloud in court by a prosecutor.

Speaking for Hoffman in court, his attorney, Bruce Malek, said Hoffman apologizes and that he decided not to speak in court in part because he "did not feel that he would be able to make even a short statement without breaking down."

Hoffman was accused of kidnapping the teenage girl, a relative of Herrmann's, during the break-in and raping her at his home in the small central Ohio city of Mount Vernon. She was found alive, bound and gagged, in his basement.

Malek and Knox County prosecutor John Thatcher said they weren't sure why Hoffman killed the other three but not the girl.

"I don't think he gave any other reason other than he couldn't bring himself to do it," Thatcher said.

The girl said the crimes have changed her life, but she's no longer scared of Hoffman. The Associated Press generally does not identify victims of sexual crimes.

The sheriff had suggested in November that Hoffman had been watching the family for some time, but Thatcher said he believes it was a random crime. Hoffman told investigators he'd intended to steal whatever valuable items he found, Thatcher said.

Malek said Hoffman did not single out one person or family and attributed the violence to "a random burglary that went terribly, terribly wrong."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jSLMi1KSg3UEVdBrwnS81Cvi0DrQ?docId=1f1591b3c6b247fcb4e7e091b4dcc2d5

United Press International

6 January 2011

Hoffman pleads guilty, gets life sentence‎

Matthew Hoffman pleaded guilty in a Knox County, Ohio, Thursday to the slaying and dismemberment a mother and child and their family friend.

Knox County Common Pleas Judge Otho Eyster sentenced Hoffman to concurrent terms of life in prison with no chance for parole, The Columbus Dispatch reported Thursday.

On Nov. 10 Hoffman, a 30-year-old unemployed tree trimmer, stabbed Tina Herrmann, 32; her son Kody Maynard, 11; and family friend Stephanie Sprang, 41, inside Herrmann's Apple Valley home and then dismembered the bodies, the newspaper said. He bagged the remains and hid them in the hollow of a beech tree northwest of Mount Vernon.

Hoffman led police to the remains Nov. 18 in order to avoid the death penalty, Sprang's sister, Sherry Baxter, said in court.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/01/06/Hoffman-pleads-guilty-gets-life-sentence/UPI-59771294351096/

CNN International

7 January 2011

Man gets life without parole in gruesome Ohio murders‎

An Ohio man pleaded guilty Thursday and was sentenced to life without parole for killing and dismembering a woman, her son and her friend and hiding their bagged remains in the hollow of a tree.

Matthew Hoffman, 30, pleaded guilty to all 10 counts, including three counts of aggravated murder and the kidnapping of one of the victim's 13-year-old relatives, in Knox County, Ohio, in November.

According to his attorney, Hoffman said he committed the crimes after encountering Tina R. Herrmann when he entered the house during a burglary attempt.

But the sister of Stephanie Sprang, one of the other victims, said there was no excuse for him killing Herrmann and waiting for the other victims to come to the house.

"Death is too easy for him and we would rather pay tax dollars and let him suffer and live and deal with what he did every day," Sherrie Baxter told CNN affiliate WSYX.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/01/06/ohio.family.sentence/

NBC4i

6 January 2011

Dad To Knox Co. Killer: I Hope You Get Jailhouse Justice‎



http://www2.nbc4i.com/news/2011/jan/06/27/hearing-set-ohio-man-charged-triple-slaying-ar-352285/