Pike County Ohio Massacre: 7 Adults, 1 Teen Shot To Death ‘Execution Style’ Law Enforcement Says

Authorities Say Killer or Killers Still at Large – Three Infants Survive

Eight members of a single family were shot dead, “execution style” in the head, in rural Pike County, Ohio, law enforcement officials say. Seven adults and one 16-year old boy were targeted and killed in four different but nearby locations, and the killer or killers are still at large. Police discovered the bodies Friday morning, the massacre appeared to have taken place overnight. Law enforcement officials have not released a motive, but say about 100 relatives of the victims have been contacted, rounded up, and offered protection.

The killers left physically unharmed a four-day old infant sleeping next to its mother, a 6-month old, and a 3-year old. 

“We have a specific family that’s been targeted but I don’t think there’s been a threat to any other members of the community,” Pike County Sheriff Charles Reader (above, photo and video) said. “I’ve given the family precautionary measures to make. They know we’re available.”

“It would appear all of them were shot in the head,” Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine said. “It would appear it occurred at night. … The mother was killed in bed with the 4-day-old right there.”

The Chillicothe Gazette reports “Leonard Manley, who said he’s the father and grandfather of some of the victims, said one of his daughters discovered the bodies when she went to Union Hill Road to feed dogs and chickens, part of her normal routine.”

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, campaigning in Pennsylvania, called it “beyond comprehension.”

 

EARLIER:

Ohio Attorney General: At Least 7 People, Including 2 Juveniles, Dead in Pike County Mass Shooting

UPDATING: At Least 7 Family Members Dead in Ohio Mass Shooting – Manhunt Underway

 

Image: Screenshot via Chicago Tribune