the house was full of blood and beer cans. if someone killed them all, they had their hands full getting rid of them. have to look at the boyfriend here.
AP
HOWARD, Ohio --
Knox County sheriff's deputies remain at a Howard home Friday, believing four missing people could be victims of foul play.
Authorities were searching for 32-year-old Tina Herrmann, her 13-year-old daughter, Sarah Maynard, and her 11-year-old son, Kody Maynard. Also missing was 41-year-old Stephanie Sprang, a friend with whom Herrmann was planning to get an apartment, said Greg Borders, who said he and Herrmann had recently ended a six-year relationship.
An endangered missing child advisory was issued for the children.
Kody is described as being 4 feet 10 inches tall, weighing 70 pounds with brown hair and hazel eyes.
Sarah is described as being 5 feet tall, weighing 90 pounds with blonde hair and green eyes.
Sprang is described as being 5 feet 3 inches tall, weighing 110 pounds with blonde hair and green eyes.
Herrmann is described as being 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing 122 pounds with sandy blonde, shoulder-length hair and blue eyes.
Herrmann's co-worker at a Dairy Queen went to her home in Howard to check on her when she didn't show up for work on Thursday, and reported her missing, Knox County Sheriff David Barber said.
Borders said Friday he last heard from the mother on Wednesday when Herrmann texted him on his way to work at a distribution center about 80 miles away in West Jefferson at about 4:40 a.m. to let him know that she'd fed the dog. He said the dog, a miniature pinscher named Tanner, was also missing.
The couple were still living together despite splitting up several weeks ago, and they were on the verge of losing their house after falling a few months behind on their mortgage payments, Borders said.
"We were fairly civil, as civil as you can be living in the same house when you're split up," he told reporters outside the home. He said they argued, but said their fights were never physical.
Borders says he finished his shift 4 p.m. Wednesday and spent the night with a friend. He was playing golf on Thursday when his mother called and said something was wrong with Herrmann.
He didn't think much of it, until he returned to the house in Howard after 5:30 p.m. and found authorities there.
He gave officers permission to search the house and didn't go inside himself. He said a deputy took a few steps into the home and said he saw a considerable mess inside.
"I think something bad happened, something happened inside the house," Borders said. "It's not like Tina or me to leave the house unsecured.
It wasn't clear if the house was unlocked when authorities arrived Thursday.
Barber said authorities are treating the blood found in the house as a sign of injuries. The case is considered a missing persons report.
It was unclear what led to the disappearance of the four, and the sheriff did not elaborate. The father of the children, who lives in Hilliard, said it was unlike Herrmann to go away without letting him know. He did not immediately return messages seeking further comment.
The split-level house is surrounded by trees and sits isolated on a relatively short, rural roadway. Both ends of the road were blocked off Friday with yellow crime-scene tape, as sheriff's deputies stood guard.
Sprang's vehicle was found parked at the home, and Herrmann's truck was found on property owned by nearby Kenyon College, about 50 miles northeast of Columbus.
The state's Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation was providing crime scene assistance, said spokesman Ted Hart, who deferred other questions to the sheriff.
Sarah Maynard is a 7th grader at East Knox Middle School, where her brother is in the 5th grade, school officials said. The district had staff available if any students were upset about their missing classmates and wanted to talk, Superintendent Matt Caputo said Friday.
Bill Miller, a bus driver for the East Knox local schools, said he was very familiar with the two children and said he picked them up every day as part of his route.
"(They are) perfect kids, never had any trouble with the kids. They were great," Miller said, stopping to talk in his car Friday morning while driving to his bus. "They're always out in the yard, playing ball back and forth, kicking stuff around. No problems I ever saw."
Borders' stories are conflicting...he spent the night with a friend and/or he spent the night at his mother's. (?)
the father of the children and their mother never married.
While investigators were continuing to question people and evaluate evidence, Barber said no activity had shown up on the women's cell phone or credit card accounts.
who moved the truck??
“Late [Thursday] evening Tina’s Ford F150 pickup truck, which had been in the driveway when deputies were here on Wednesday, was recovered near Kenyon College. It was not on the Kenyon campus. It was outside the village of Gambier. The truck is now being processed by the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation.”
Ch 10 news WBNS
"Detectives are interviewing family members, friends and acquaintances," said Knox County Sheriff David Barber. "Right now, there is no indication that they were abducted."
Investigators spent Friday searching through Herrmann's King Beach Drive home for clues as to why the four disappeared.
Even though blood was found inside the home, police said that they did not believe it came from a struggle, but from an injury at least one of the missing people sustained.
Barber said they were treating the disappearance as a missing person's case.
Larry Maynard, the father of the two children, said that one of Herrmann's co-workers at Dairy Queen, located at 1600 Coshocton Ave., in Mount Vernon, went to check on her after she did not show up for her Thursday shift. The co-worker told him that she found blood and beer cans when she peeked inside the windows before calling 911.
Greg Borders, who shares the house with Herrmann and her two children, said that he left for work early Wednesday and then spent the night at a friend's house in Urbana, Ohio.
Borders admitted that their six-year relationship was shaky but told 10TV News that he would never hurt Herrmann or her children.
"I mean, there were arguments every once in awhile and disagreements, but I was still watching her kids at night when she went to work," Borders said. "I think something bad happened."
Herrmann's pickup was discovered late Thursday night near the Kenyon College campus in nearby Gambier.
According to Larry Maynard, Herrmann and Borders were having problems and she needed to get away from him. Larry Maynard told 10TV News that Herrmann was searching for a new place to live and that his children often spoke of problems in the house.
"The kids have told me when (Borders) gets drunk, he becomes somewhat violent," Larry Maynard said. "He throws beer bottles at the pickup truck if their mom tries to leave. He broke the garage door. He gets real vulgar, belligerent when he's drunk."
Borders admitted that the situation was not ideal but the reports of a volatile relationship were not true.
"We were fairly civil," Borders said. "I mean, as civil as you can be living in the same house when you are split up."
"I'm expecting the worst and hoping for the best," Larry Maynard said.
MOUNT VERNON NEWS — According to residents on Columbus Road, just south of Mount Vernon, local law enforcement officers forced entry into a Columbus Road residence about 7:45 this morning.
Neighbors told News Photographer Virgil Shipley they saw what appeared to be one person, presumed dead, removed from the home and one person taken from the home by emergency medical personnel.
Authorities would not confirm these details or whether or not this crime scene is connected to the disappearance of Tina Herrmann, Sarah Maynard, Kody Maynard and Stephanie Sprang.
The four people have been missing since Wednesday from Apple Valley.
Knox County Coroner, Jennifer Ogle, told the News that she has not been called out by law enforcement on any case today.
The News is following this development and will continue to update with details become available.
i caught tail end of presser with sheriff Barber (photo below) the local ch. 10 news really screwed it up.
from what i have gathered so far, the girl Sarah was bound and gagged in basement. i do not know what led police to house.
someone in custody, matthew hoffman, 30, photo below. he knows where other 3 people are, but not talking yet. don't know his connection to the missing people. he has a CO. arson conviction.
it is very difficult to kidnap and control 4 people! and the dog.
Sarah in hospital.
Sheriff says 3 still missing so who was in body bag neighbor saw?
edit to add: sheriff says there was NO body or body bag.
i'm looking for more info.
the girl was rescued this morning, and still no sign of the others...so does that mean she doesn't know what happened to them?
civilians are out searching this evening.
Sheriff David Barber advised that police acted on a tip which led them to the girl.
"We were hopeful of finding more than one of the missing people in the house," he said. "But the information we had was that Sarah would definitely be found in that house."
Hoffman is a convicted felon who was sentenced to prison for 8 years in January, 2001, after pouring 10 gallons of gasoline into a townhouse and setting it on fire to cover up a burglary. The townhouse was part of an 8 unit occupied building, which required the evacuation of 16 people and completely destroyed 2 units. He was also sentenced to 4 years each for burglary and aggravated motor vehicle theft, to run concurrently with the arson sentence.
the Sheriff Dept. has closed off local Foundation Park this morning, known for gravel pits. no media cameras allowed.
FOX 28
BREAKING: FOUNDATION PARK CLOSED: "MAY BE EVIDENCE"
KNOX COUNTY, Ohio -- Mt. Vernon police officers have closed Foundation Park which is near suspect Matt Hoffman's house because there "may be evidence."
i'm watching live chopper video here, there does not seem to be a lot of activity at the moment.
but you can see quarries filled with water and police presence.
edit. crime scene tape in front of some woods. looks like 2 waiting for ME wagon or others?
one looks like CSI. there is a CSI truck. taking photos.
putting gloves on, entering wooded area.
carries out paper bag.
no ME wagon yet, i wonder if they found the dog, personal belongings, what?
crime scene tape is down. evidence bags being placed in truck.
i just got back online, presser coming up at 2 PM.
Their search took them down a long gravel road on the east side of Apple Valley. After a few minutes of searching they came across two shirts: One pink and one red and looked as if ripped. The clothing appeared suspicious as it hung loosely over fallen tree limbs.
A deputy arrived on the scene, collected the articles of clothing and was supporti
Sheriff just completed presser. he's a low-key guy. no comment on anything the girl or the accused may have told them about missing people.
WBNS
MOUNT VERNON, Ohio — The Knox County sheriff announced on Monday that a special tip line was established for information about three people who have been missing since last week.
Sheriff David Barber said that authorities want to remain optimistic that Tina Herrmann, 32; her son, Kody, 11; and a friend, Stephanie Sprang, 41, are alive.
Barber added that "there is a possibility" that the three were killed.
His comments were made one day after a 13-year-old girl who was also missing was found bound and gagged in the basement of a Mount Vernon home.
Matthew Hoffman, 30, was arrested and charged with Sarah Maynard's kidnapping. The 13-year-old was removed from Hoffman's home after authorities swarmed the location on Sunday morning.
Barber said that Sarah Maynard was released from a hospital and was at home with family members.
Investigators tracked Hoffman down with the help of a receipt for a tarp that was purchased at a Walmart store in Mount Vernon, 10TV News reported.
Crime scene investigators removed bags of evidence from nearby Foundation Park on Monday, located near Hoffman's home.
Police apparently found items in the park and gathered evidence that filled a two-foot bag, 10TV's Tino Ramos reported.
WBNS:
MOUNT VERNON, Ohio — The search for three people missing in Knox County included cadaver dogs on Tuesday.
No one has seen or heard from Tina Herrmann, 32; her son, Kody, 11; and a friend, Stephanie Sprang, 41, since last Wednesday.
Investigators were using cadaver dogs to search six specific areas, including the Kokosing Gap trail that runs between Howard and Mount Vernon, 10TV's Tino Ramos reported.
Detectives told 10TV that dogs found a possible piece of evidence located off the trail near state Route 229.
It was a sock that appeared to have been recently placed in the area. Investigators were unsure whether it was connected to the missing people.
A shoe was also found at Foundation Park, but there was no immediate word on whether it belonged to one of the missing people
Columbus Dispatch:
Authorities searching for three missing people in Knox County found duct-taped trash bags on the side of a road in Knox County. Searchers are scouring a recreational trail, roadsides and other areas today in hope of finding three people missing since Wednesday.
It was unclear if the bags yielded any clues to the whereabouts of Tina Herrmann, 32; her 11-year-old son, Kody Maynard; and a family friend, Stephanie Sprang, 42. Herrmann's 13-year-old daughter, Sarah Maynard, was found alive but bound and gagged in the basement of an area man Sunday. That man, Matthew J. Hoffman, is charged with kidnapping and will appear in court today.
The bags are on the side of Lower Gambier Road near Rt. 229, about a half mile from where Tina Herrmann's car was found abandoned on Thursday. The silver-and-black tarp is about 20 feet off the road near the edge of a woods. Agents with the Ohio Bureau of Identification and Investigation are on the way to check out the bags, a Franklin County deputy said.
Delaware County deputies and two dog teams also joined the search. They are searching the Kokosing Gap Trail, a 14-mile paved recreational trail that runs between Mount Vernon and Danville. A section of the trail ends near where Tina Herrmann's truck was found abandoned on Thursday.
photo is Sprang's father.
suspect will be in court this afternoon for first appearance on kidnapping charge.
minutes ago, hoffman in court by CCTV. he did not speak. bond is one million dollars. next court date Nov. 23. it is FULL bond, not 10%.
that's a suicide watch gown he is wearing.
If he's wearing that it means the authorities have reason to believe he wants to die, right? Why don't any of these people ever kill themselves BEFORE they hurt others?
standard question on booking intake to jail is "do you want to harm yourself?" if they say yes, they are put on suicide watch. so he must have indicated a desire to harm himself.
as for why don't they do it before being caught? because they are sickos who don't expect to get caught. they want sympathy when they get to jail.
any officer or nurse can place an inmate on a watch, but a shrink must take them off the watch.
MOUNT VERNON, Ohio — Investigators have recovered significant pieces of evidence in connection with the kidnapping of a 13-year-old girl and the disappearance of two women and a boy, the Knox County Sheriff said on Tuesday.
Sheriff David Barber would not elaborate about what was recovered, 10TV News reported.
No one has seen or heard from Tina Herrmann, 32; her son, Kody, 11; and a friend, Stephanie Sprang, 41, since last Wednesday.
SLIDESHOWS: Hoffman In Court | Case Timeline | Tuesday's Search | Park Search | Images From Mount Vernon Neighborhood | Four Missing | Search For Missing People | VIDEO EXTRA: Sheriff David Barber's Nov. 15 News Conference
Search operations for the three included cadaver dogs on Tuesday.
Investigators used dogs to search six specific areas, including the Kokosing Gap trail that runs between nearby Howard, Ohio, and Mount Vernon, 10TV's Tino Ramos reported.
The man charged with kidnapping the girl, Sarah Maynard, was ordered held under $1 million bond on Tuesday.
Hoffman, 30, was ordered to post the full $1 million to be released from custody, 10TV's Maureen Kocot reported. Hoffman, who wore a "suicide gown" during his video court hearing, will be back in court next Tuesday.
Hoffman, who has not cooperated with investigators, now has a public defender and investigators have been cut off from him since he has a lawyer, Barber said.
According to Barber, Hoffman purchased trash bags, a T-shirt, tarps and a sandwich from the Mount Vernon Walmart. Investigators recovered trash bags and a tarp during their investigation, Barber said.
Barber would not elaborate on when the items were purchased.
(11-16-2010, 05:01 PM)Lady Cop Wrote: According to Barber, Hoffman purchased trash bags, a T-shirt, tarps and a sandwich from the Mount Vernon Walmart.
MOUNT VERNON, Ohio - Search crews found more possible clues Wednesday in the case of three missing people from Knox County.
According to Lisa Kelley, a volunteer from Columbus who is assisting with the search, her team recovered a tennis shoe, burnt hair clip, white sheet and a purple sweatshirt near a creek. Kelley said investigators took the items away to be processed.
The creek is not far from 30-year-old Matthew Hoffman’s home. He’s been arrested and charged with kidnapping after 13-year-old Sarah Maynard was found bound and gagged in his basement.
During a news conference Wednesday updating the status of the investigation, Knox County Sheriff David Barber said he is not sure yet whether the items found by searchers are relevant to the disappearance of 32-year-old Tina Herrmann; her 10-year-old son, Kody Maynard; and her 41-year-old friend, Stephanie Sprang. They haven't been seen for a week.
Sheriff Barber said search efforts are continuing throughout the county, and tips continue to come in regarding the case. He said some of the tips have been helpful in the investigation.
The sheriff released these descriptions of what the missing people were last seen wearing:
Tina: White ballcap, tan hoodie, dark-colored sweatpants, tennis shoes
Cody: Black shoes, jeans, gray T-shirt, blue zippered hoodie
Stephanie: No information yet
Barber said the investigation is progressing, but the reality that the three missing people are alive is becoming less likely. There has been no activity on their credit cards or cell phones.
Barber also said the two vehicles found in the lake this week have nothing to do with the missing people.
![[Image: Zy3rKpW.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Zy3rKpW.png)