WEBVTT - Ties that Bind 0:00:00.600 --> 0:00:03.680 Welcome to the Pike to Massacre Season two returned to 0:00:03.760 --> 0:00:10.520 Pike County, a production of iHeartRadio and Katie Studios. Heavenly Father, 0:00:11.160 --> 0:00:14.960 we are gathered here today. Let us now our heads. 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:19.279 It was a really good wedding. She had a camouflage 0:00:19.360 --> 0:00:27.080 dress and Fata Camo tugs. Eight bodies have been discovered 0:00:27.120 --> 0:00:31.360 in all members of the Rodent family, the largest case 0:00:31.440 --> 0:00:35.800 Ohio's state investigators have ever seen. I told her, I said, listen, 0:00:35.880 --> 0:00:38.920 you don't want to marry him, and she said, well, 0:00:39.000 --> 0:00:43.120 whying on? I said, because his mom is very control waying. 0:00:44.400 --> 0:00:48.199 Please join hands. From what we hear, the relationship was intense. 0:00:48.479 --> 0:00:51.400 It sounded like the half fields of numbercois taken to 0:00:51.520 --> 0:00:55.880 the nth degree. So long as you both shouted. Four 0:00:55.920 --> 0:00:58.480 members of the Wagner family have been charged with eight 0:00:58.520 --> 0:01:01.640 counts of aggravated murder. I have never encountered queer an 0:01:01.760 --> 0:01:05.600 entire family is accused of the mass murder of another family. 0:01:06.000 --> 0:01:10.800 Is something so horrific has occurred, and it's almost beyond explanation. 0:01:12.240 --> 0:01:15.160 When I look at one particular picture from the wedding day, 0:01:15.280 --> 0:01:18.560 it's impossible to believe that nearly half of the people 0:01:18.760 --> 0:01:25.480 are dead and half are accused of their murders. This 0:01:25.600 --> 0:01:29.640 is the piked in Massacre. Season two returned to Pike County. 0:01:30.200 --> 0:01:40.960 Episode one, Ties That Bind. I'm Courtney Armstrong, a television 0:01:40.959 --> 0:01:44.479 producer at Katie Studios with Stephanie Lydecker and Jeff Shane. 0:01:45.040 --> 0:01:48.160 On the morning of April twenty second, twenty sixteen, authorities 0:01:48.160 --> 0:01:51.160 found eight members of the Rodent family brutally gunned down 0:01:51.280 --> 0:01:54.880 across four different crime scenes in Pike County, Ohio. Two 0:01:54.960 --> 0:01:58.200 years later, in November of twenty eighteen, four members of 0:01:58.240 --> 0:02:01.280 the Wagner family were arrested for murders. It was a 0:02:01.320 --> 0:02:04.800 gruesome crime that shocked the nation. We've been following the 0:02:04.880 --> 0:02:07.680 Roden family murder case since we made a documentary about 0:02:07.680 --> 0:02:09.920 it a few years ago. We were in the middle 0:02:09.960 --> 0:02:12.960 of producing season two of this podcast when we suddenly 0:02:13.040 --> 0:02:16.160 learned of a shocking development that none of us were expecting. 0:02:16.880 --> 0:02:19.919 The fifth anniversary of the murders, our social media folks 0:02:19.960 --> 0:02:23.120 started hearing people posting, Hey, there's a hearing fan. You 0:02:23.200 --> 0:02:25.040 got to be there. There might be something big going down. 0:02:25.240 --> 0:02:27.239 BCI has told the Roden family to be at the 0:02:27.240 --> 0:02:29.919 Pike County Courthouse at one thirty for a hearing breaking 0:02:29.960 --> 0:02:32.679 news to night shocking new developments from Pike County. On 0:02:32.800 --> 0:02:36.040 April twenty second, of two and sixteen, eight members of 0:02:36.040 --> 0:02:39.120 the Roden family were found dead at four different properties. 0:02:39.320 --> 0:02:43.240 Investigation lasted nearly two years before authorities arrested Jane Wagner 0:02:43.440 --> 0:02:45.280 along with several members of his fan A lot of 0:02:45.280 --> 0:02:47.360 people care about it, a lot of people know about it, 0:02:47.400 --> 0:02:49.320 and a lot of people are talking about it. Today, 0:02:50.680 --> 0:02:53.799 on Thursday, April twenty second, twenty twenty one, the five 0:02:53.880 --> 0:02:56.440 year anniversary of the murders, we sat at our computers 0:02:56.440 --> 0:02:59.720 watching a live stream from the Pike County Courthouse, and 0:03:00.000 --> 0:03:02.880 there he was, Jake Wagner, flanked by his two attorneys, 0:03:02.919 --> 0:03:12.880 as Judge Randy Deering entered the courtroom. Thank you for 0:03:13.040 --> 0:03:16.919 the record. Identify myself with Rob Pike Canty, crossecutor. I'm 0:03:16.919 --> 0:03:19.160 here on behalf of the State of Ohio. On State 0:03:19.200 --> 0:03:21.880 of Ohio versus Edward J. Wager, and that would be 0:03:21.919 --> 0:03:25.359 Pike County Common Police School's case twenty eighteen CR. I 0:03:25.400 --> 0:03:27.400 wanted to be four if you want. The court ra 0:03:27.520 --> 0:03:31.240 noted Dave marks the fifth anniversary of the homicides of 0:03:31.240 --> 0:03:34.800 eight members of the roots manilies and Gilly families, and 0:03:34.960 --> 0:03:37.480 as it is the fifth anniversary, this is a periory 0:03:37.600 --> 0:03:40.680 ton of horse that we have preached an agreement with 0:03:40.840 --> 0:03:46.760 this defendant, Edward D. Wagner, to resolve this case. Prosecutor 0:03:46.840 --> 0:03:49.760 Rob Junk listed off the names of each Slane member 0:03:49.880 --> 0:03:54.560 of the Ruden family, Christopher Rudden, Scene, Gary Ruden, Clarence 0:03:54.600 --> 0:04:00.880 Frankie Ruden, Kenneth Ruden, Hannah Gilly, Dana Manley, Hannah Rud 0:04:01.040 --> 0:04:05.360 and Christopher ridden Junior. When Judge Deering asked Jake how 0:04:05.400 --> 0:04:08.400 he pled to each aggravated murder charge, he replied with 0:04:08.480 --> 0:04:20.159 one simple phrase, I am jilt. We've realized that this 0:04:20.200 --> 0:04:22.279 whole case had blown open and we'd be following in 0:04:22.360 --> 0:04:24.800 real time. We immediately got on the phone with some 0:04:24.839 --> 0:04:27.320 of the journalists and experts that have been covering the case. 0:04:27.400 --> 0:04:31.200 The closest across the board. There was one pretty consistent reaction, 0:04:31.480 --> 0:04:35.320 absolutely stunned. I mean, honestly, you could have knocked me 0:04:35.360 --> 0:04:37.880 over with a feather. I didn't see it coming. When 0:04:37.920 --> 0:04:40.240 we heard the judge say, I understand you're here to 0:04:40.240 --> 0:04:43.240 make it agree me, and we're like, oh my gosh, 0:04:43.279 --> 0:04:46.560 this is huge. I was really surprised, especially as long 0:04:46.600 --> 0:04:49.080 and hard as they fought it. It was a total shock. 0:04:49.240 --> 0:04:51.360 I was sitting in a restaurant when I got the call, 0:04:51.440 --> 0:04:54.839 and I almost fell out of the booth. After all 0:04:54.880 --> 0:04:58.760 of these years, that somebody is going to suddenly say, yeah, 0:04:58.760 --> 0:05:01.880 you know, I know. We've you know, several times over 0:05:01.880 --> 0:05:04.919 the last five years, we've vehemently denied any involvement in 0:05:04.960 --> 0:05:08.520 this and acted offended, and then all of a sudden, like, 0:05:08.560 --> 0:05:11.600 oh yeah, well, one of them changed their minds. It 0:05:11.640 --> 0:05:14.800 was a little bit stunning, but it was Jake, because 0:05:15.240 --> 0:05:21.280 everybody who's really covered this piece closely thought if anybody wavered, 0:05:21.600 --> 0:05:26.560 it would have been George. Our first question, why did 0:05:26.640 --> 0:05:29.760 Jake Wagner finally break I don't know that any of 0:05:29.839 --> 0:05:32.200 us would know. Is he going to tell us? Why? 0:05:32.920 --> 0:05:35.599 Why would you make this deal? Was he doing this 0:05:35.720 --> 0:05:39.320 to save their lives or was he just turning on them? 0:05:39.760 --> 0:05:43.480 I can't say for sure. Is there a likelihood that 0:05:43.520 --> 0:05:47.080 the other family members will plead out, I mean, that's 0:05:47.200 --> 0:05:51.479 entirely possible. Just weeks before the hearing, we had received 0:05:51.480 --> 0:05:55.160 a photo from Pike County native Christina, her sister Tabitha 0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:58.120 was once married to the eldest accus son, George Wagner. 0:05:58.960 --> 0:06:01.280 In light of Jake's please deal, the image is nothing 0:06:01.320 --> 0:06:05.600 short of chilling. We posted on our Instagram at Katie 0:06:05.640 --> 0:06:08.960 Underscore Studios. It's a picture of both the Roden and 0:06:09.000 --> 0:06:12.279 Wagner families gathered together to celebrate George and Tabitha's wedding 0:06:12.320 --> 0:06:16.400 back in twenty twelve. Looking at it, it's impossible to 0:06:16.480 --> 0:06:19.440 imagine that, aside from the bride, half the people pictured 0:06:19.480 --> 0:06:22.400 would be dead, the other half accused of their murders. 0:06:23.560 --> 0:06:28.159 Yet here they are embracing in happier times. At the 0:06:28.240 --> 0:06:30.880 left of the photo is Jake Wagner, the youngest accused 0:06:30.880 --> 0:06:35.080 son who we just heard plead guilty. He's smiling, his 0:06:35.240 --> 0:06:40.120 right hand resting on his accused mother, Angela Wagner's arm. 0:06:40.160 --> 0:06:43.520 Standing behind them at six foot six is Jake's accused father, 0:06:43.800 --> 0:06:49.960 Billy Wagner, noticeably emotionless. Standing next to Billy Wagner in 0:06:49.960 --> 0:06:54.520 the photo is father and victim Chris Roden. Senior family friends. 0:06:54.560 --> 0:07:00.160 Stefan remembers Chris's expert craftsmanship and genuine kindness. He as 0:07:00.560 --> 0:07:05.880 an amazing carpenter. His imagination. If they said money's no object, 0:07:06.200 --> 0:07:09.000 you would be amazed at the things that he could 0:07:09.040 --> 0:07:13.840 do and you couldn't ask for a better person. Coroner, 0:07:14.040 --> 0:07:18.160 distinguished Professor and criminal forensic expert Joseph Morgan tried to 0:07:18.200 --> 0:07:21.080 make sense of the Rodent murders, starting with father and 0:07:21.160 --> 0:07:24.720 family patriarch Chris Senior. Some of this will be hard 0:07:24.760 --> 0:07:27.760 to hear, particularly if you're personally connected to the tragedy, 0:07:27.920 --> 0:07:30.720 but it's important to understand the magnitude of what happened 0:07:30.720 --> 0:07:34.120 that night. He was shot nine times. Now, for me, 0:07:34.320 --> 0:07:36.840 as a forensic investigator, I would look at that and 0:07:36.880 --> 0:07:41.760 I would deem that as overkill. And you know, why 0:07:41.760 --> 0:07:46.160 would somebody need to be shot nine times. They're saying 0:07:46.160 --> 0:07:49.920 that there's evidence that he attempted or reacted at least 0:07:49.960 --> 0:07:53.800 to the point where he raised his arm his right 0:07:53.960 --> 0:07:57.720 form and it shattered one of the bones. When you've 0:07:57.720 --> 0:08:01.560 got an individual that has gotten defensive, that person has 0:08:01.560 --> 0:08:05.320 an awareness, so that goes to a level of callousness 0:08:05.320 --> 0:08:10.440 that that's Roses too. Standing just in front of Chris 0:08:10.440 --> 0:08:13.119 Senior in the wedding photo with his father's arm draped 0:08:13.160 --> 0:08:16.440 around his shoulder is the youngest Roden victim sixteen year 0:08:16.440 --> 0:08:21.320 old Chris Junior, affectionately called Little Chris. Brittany was Chris 0:08:21.400 --> 0:08:24.800 Junior's best friend. Well, Chris, he taught me how to 0:08:24.920 --> 0:08:30.520 love life. You know, look at life differently. I can't 0:08:30.520 --> 0:08:37.400 explain that like it makes you will to cry. Roden 0:08:37.440 --> 0:08:40.760 family members spoke to reporters about Chris Junior soon after 0:08:40.800 --> 0:08:45.360 the murders. Christopher get to go to prom. You just 0:08:45.520 --> 0:08:49.920 kind of driver, super so he's sixteen years old. He 0:08:50.040 --> 0:08:56.200 had a whole life. Sixteen year old Chris Junior was 0:08:56.240 --> 0:09:00.319 shot four toms, including twice in the time off of 0:09:00.400 --> 0:09:06.160 his head. He was sound wished behind his bed, implying 0:09:06.200 --> 0:09:09.920 that he was trying to hide from the killer. Killers. 0:09:12.120 --> 0:09:14.400 Just in back of Chris Junior and the photo stands 0:09:14.400 --> 0:09:18.240 his older brother, twenty year old victim Frankie Roden. Christina 0:09:18.320 --> 0:09:21.120 knew Frankie growing up. Frankie he was the kind of 0:09:21.160 --> 0:09:23.680 guy like he did a first sure hunting fisher and 0:09:23.720 --> 0:09:27.640 all that. But he did like Derby's bad working on 0:09:27.760 --> 0:09:31.160 carters and stuff. That was his passion. Frankie Rodin was 0:09:31.160 --> 0:09:35.400 engaged to victim Hannah Gilly, not pictured just before the murders. 0:09:35.600 --> 0:09:38.720 The couple had had their first child together. They're six 0:09:38.760 --> 0:09:41.320 month old, and Frankie's three year old son were left 0:09:41.320 --> 0:09:44.120 alive at the scene. Frankie and Hannah they did want 0:09:44.120 --> 0:09:47.319 more children than you know, they had a bright future 0:09:47.440 --> 0:09:52.480 and just oh it just it just hurts my heart 0:09:52.520 --> 0:09:54.800 to think that, you know, they'll never get to go 0:09:54.840 --> 0:09:58.120 on with their future plans. You know, twenty year old 0:09:58.120 --> 0:10:02.599 Frankie Rodin was shot Thoms in the head miss He 0:10:02.760 --> 0:10:06.240 lay in bed next to his fiance and they're six 0:10:06.320 --> 0:10:11.000 month old. We talked about Hannah and Gillie Hayes shot 0:10:11.000 --> 0:10:15.520 five Toms. She catches one in the eye. It poses 0:10:15.600 --> 0:10:17.880 this idea, why are you shooting these people in the face. 0:10:18.559 --> 0:10:20.840 What's the purpose of it? Because not only shoe him 0:10:20.840 --> 0:10:24.440 in the flacier, shoe him multiple times? What thread did 0:10:24.480 --> 0:10:28.040 she pos she's laying there was her child in the bed. 0:10:30.440 --> 0:10:32.400 To the right of the group photograph, we see the 0:10:32.440 --> 0:10:36.320 two newlyweds, the accused eldest son, George Wagner, and his 0:10:36.400 --> 0:10:40.920 new bride smiling excitedly. We believe that Dana, victim and 0:10:40.960 --> 0:10:43.760 matriarch of the road and family, was behind the camera 0:10:43.840 --> 0:10:47.040 taking the photo. Christina remembered Dana Road in that day 0:10:47.080 --> 0:10:50.920 in twenty twelve. She seemed pretty bubbly. You know, she's 0:10:50.960 --> 0:10:55.200 get along with her family. I've seen her laugh and 0:10:55.320 --> 0:10:59.480 with the most ways. She's going around taking pictures of everything. 0:11:00.800 --> 0:11:04.160 Dana Roden and Chris Roden Senior were married for thirteen years. 0:11:04.760 --> 0:11:08.520 Even though they divorced, they remained friends. In fact, Dana 0:11:08.559 --> 0:11:10.520 lived just down the road in a home that Chris 0:11:10.520 --> 0:11:13.360 Senior had purchased for her. Two weeks before their murders. 0:11:14.120 --> 0:11:16.560 She had just returned home from a double shift at 0:11:16.600 --> 0:11:19.840 her job as a nurse that fateful night. Here is Stefanne, 0:11:19.960 --> 0:11:22.920 one of Dana Roden's closest friends. She was such a 0:11:22.920 --> 0:11:25.679 good person, but you know, she would fight for her family. 0:11:25.880 --> 0:11:30.120 She would literally fight for her family. And goodhearted, a 0:11:30.160 --> 0:11:34.120 lot of fun, you know, always laughing, cracking up. Yeah, 0:11:34.120 --> 0:11:36.120 from why we hear she was like really strong willed 0:11:36.240 --> 0:11:40.199 and really smart. Yeah, she sure was. She she was 0:11:40.240 --> 0:11:44.360 a very very good person. She's very smart. She again, 0:11:44.880 --> 0:11:48.640 like Chris Senior, was shot multiple toms. And not only 0:11:48.760 --> 0:11:53.559 was she shot multiple tims, but specifically reports have her 0:11:53.920 --> 0:11:59.000 having been shot five tims four times cool tims in 0:11:59.040 --> 0:12:03.920 the head. Now, why the hell, would you shoot somebody 0:12:03.920 --> 0:12:09.160 four times in the head, because you know one should suffice. 0:12:09.920 --> 0:12:13.840 But the shooter took the top to take that muzzle 0:12:13.880 --> 0:12:19.400 of that weapon. Stick it beneath Dana's chin. Stick it 0:12:19.520 --> 0:12:24.240 beneath her chin. Now, this is a common location for suicide, 0:12:24.440 --> 0:12:30.640 all right, this is atypical for homicide. Victim Gary Rodin, 0:12:30.920 --> 0:12:34.160 Chris Senior's cousin, also not pictured, was a beloved member 0:12:34.200 --> 0:12:37.360 of the family. By all accounts, Gary and Chrissior were 0:12:37.440 --> 0:12:41.400 very close. Here's Angeanette Levy. She's an Emmy nominated Ohio 0:12:41.520 --> 0:12:43.920 reporter who has been covering the case since the beginning. 0:12:44.200 --> 0:12:46.800 Gary just happened to be at Chris's home that night. 0:12:46.960 --> 0:12:51.280 He was actually from Kentucky, so you know, he didn't 0:12:51.280 --> 0:12:53.760 even live in the area or the neighborhood, but you know, 0:12:53.840 --> 0:12:56.600 lived close enough to where he was staying with Chris 0:12:56.640 --> 0:12:59.920 that evening. We do know that the shooter was very 0:13:00.280 --> 0:13:02.520 close to Gary when they fired, because they talk about 0:13:02.679 --> 0:13:05.080 what is referred to as a press contact bench at 0:13:05.080 --> 0:13:09.640 one and if our listeners will essentially take your index finger, okay, 0:13:09.679 --> 0:13:13.160 and point it towards the palm of your hand and 0:13:13.840 --> 0:13:18.200 extend the tip of your finger maybe I don't know, 0:13:18.320 --> 0:13:20.600 probably about half an inch away from the surface of 0:13:20.640 --> 0:13:24.000 your palm. That's kind of what we would refer to 0:13:24.200 --> 0:13:27.319 as a contact moon. And what that means is that 0:13:27.360 --> 0:13:29.480 you're going to have, you know, the bullet's not the 0:13:29.520 --> 0:13:31.800 only thing coming out of the end of the weapon. 0:13:32.160 --> 0:13:36.040 You're going to have the fire that actually the ignition 0:13:36.040 --> 0:13:38.680 of the bullet and the round. You'll have this burning 0:13:38.679 --> 0:13:41.240 the powder that's coming out. You'll have unburned powder that's 0:13:41.280 --> 0:13:47.120 coming out. So this is a very intimate event. Kenneth Roden, 0:13:47.280 --> 0:13:50.400 Christina's brother, who was also missing from the photo, was 0:13:50.440 --> 0:13:53.040 not with the family that day. He was, you know, 0:13:53.440 --> 0:13:57.359 a great father and he would do anything for anybody. 0:13:57.840 --> 0:14:02.240 You've got Kenneth who was actually again shot in face, 0:14:02.280 --> 0:14:04.520 and not only was he shot and facing, was shot 0:14:04.559 --> 0:14:07.840 in the eye. You know, what does it say that 0:14:07.960 --> 0:14:09.920 they would take the time and put themselves in a 0:14:09.960 --> 0:14:14.160 position where they could be face to face with Kenneth. 0:14:14.720 --> 0:14:17.400 He was found covered with dollar bills that were streamed 0:14:17.760 --> 0:14:21.800 about his body. He's just god, I mean, he can't 0:14:22.840 --> 0:14:27.480 he can't make this. Up Standing front and center in 0:14:27.520 --> 0:14:30.440 the picture is then fifteen year old victim Hannah Rodin. 0:14:30.920 --> 0:14:33.800 She's in a black bridesmaid's dress and leans in close 0:14:33.800 --> 0:14:38.080 to her boyfriend accused younger son, Jake Wagner. Their child 0:14:38.080 --> 0:14:41.560 together would eventually become the alleged center point of this crime. 0:14:43.080 --> 0:14:45.000 They had been dating for a few years when the 0:14:45.040 --> 0:14:49.600 photo was taken, and appeared very happy. Jake Wagner was 0:14:49.680 --> 0:14:53.480 Hannah Roden's first love. Christina told us things between them, 0:14:53.560 --> 0:14:58.960 we're getting serious. I heard Hannah Jake like talking about 0:14:59.040 --> 0:15:03.720 how good then pretty Tabby and George's wedding was that 0:15:04.200 --> 0:15:08.720 they hoped whenever they get married that it'll be pretty 0:15:08.840 --> 0:15:12.720 like that and all that good stuff. Brittany was also 0:15:12.760 --> 0:15:16.080 friends with Hannah. She was great, She was funny. She 0:15:16.200 --> 0:15:19.280 was really funny. She was really really nice. She knew everyone, 0:15:19.440 --> 0:15:21.840 Everyone knew her, and she just like talked to everyone. 0:15:22.200 --> 0:15:25.880 She wasn't stuck up or anything like that. And she 0:15:26.520 --> 0:15:29.360 lived life to the fullest. Prior to the murder, Hannah 0:15:29.400 --> 0:15:32.160 Rodin had broken up with Jake Wagner. She had started 0:15:32.240 --> 0:15:34.640 dating someone new, and the pair had a baby together 0:15:34.840 --> 0:15:37.240 that she gave birth to four days before the murders. 0:15:37.640 --> 0:15:41.080 Hannah rod She was shot twice in the head as 0:15:41.120 --> 0:15:46.000 her four day old newborn laid beside her, maybe there 0:15:46.040 --> 0:15:49.040 curled in a fetal posture, along with her baby, just 0:15:49.200 --> 0:15:52.480 curled in a fetal posture. Mama was slowly stroking the 0:15:52.480 --> 0:15:55.760 head of the baby, try to, you know, calm suit 0:15:55.840 --> 0:15:58.400 the baby during the night. Maybe she awakes, some breastfeeds 0:15:58.400 --> 0:16:00.440 the baby during the night while she's sleeping. It's a 0:16:00.440 --> 0:16:03.640 position people will slept in for thousands and thousands of years. 0:16:04.000 --> 0:16:08.320 It's a position of comfort. Imagine you're laying there, you're 0:16:08.320 --> 0:16:10.600 there to protect your baby, and you're curled up on 0:16:10.640 --> 0:16:15.560 your side. There's an awareness. The only people left alive 0:16:15.600 --> 0:16:19.840 were three children, Hannah's forty old infant, Frankie's five year 0:16:19.880 --> 0:16:23.080 old son from a previous relationship, and the six month 0:16:23.080 --> 0:16:27.200 old baby he shared with his fiancee, Hannah Gilly. The 0:16:27.280 --> 0:16:32.120 choice to spare the children lived investigators perplexed. Here's James Pilcher. 0:16:32.200 --> 0:16:35.680 He's an on air reporter for Local twelve News in Cincinnati, Ohio, 0:16:35.800 --> 0:16:39.640 and a longtime investigative journalist in the area. Usually when 0:16:39.640 --> 0:16:44.240 you have a mass shooting or a mass murder, everybody's killed. 0:16:44.960 --> 0:16:48.360 So to see that three kids, all under the age 0:16:48.400 --> 0:16:52.440 of three years old, some infants were left unharmed next 0:16:52.440 --> 0:16:56.040 to their parents who were shot dead, very very unusual. 0:16:57.400 --> 0:17:00.120 Soon after the murders, members of the Rodent family the 0:17:00.200 --> 0:17:02.920 statement to the local media pleading for help and finding 0:17:02.920 --> 0:17:06.199 their family's killers. We know what follows is difficult listening, 0:17:06.359 --> 0:17:09.120 but we want to acknowledge the pain. The entire surviving 0:17:09.200 --> 0:17:12.640 Rodent family has gone through a lots of people. They 0:17:12.720 --> 0:17:18.560 lose one family member, and when you lose eight, nobody 0:17:18.600 --> 0:17:24.000 has any idea what we've been through our lives as 0:17:24.240 --> 0:17:29.280 right now. They'll never be safe. They stole so much 0:17:29.280 --> 0:17:33.400 from us. The killers stole so much. They stole their 0:17:33.480 --> 0:17:38.000 lives that they stole ours to because we live with 0:17:38.119 --> 0:17:45.679 it every day. Met my brothers, who are good people. 0:17:46.119 --> 0:17:50.040 They would do anything to help you. Dana was a 0:17:50.080 --> 0:17:54.280 wonderful person. She always try to help do stuff. From 0:17:54.320 --> 0:18:03.520 my mom, from Frankie, his fiance Hannah. They we're taken 0:18:03.560 --> 0:18:07.000 away from their kids. They were taken away from us. 0:18:10.960 --> 0:18:14.760 My niece Hannah May, she had a baby that I 0:18:14.880 --> 0:18:19.800 haven't even got to meet. The Gillies, Gary's mom and dad. 0:18:20.240 --> 0:18:25.399 They only know what we are all going through, and 0:18:25.640 --> 0:18:29.840 I know that in their hearts, in their minds, they're 0:18:29.920 --> 0:18:38.480 hoping and praying every day just like we are, that 0:18:38.800 --> 0:18:48.240 whoever did this will be brought to justice. Looking back 0:18:48.240 --> 0:18:50.560 at the wedding photo, what's hard to wrap our heads 0:18:50.560 --> 0:18:52.920 around is that all the players are in this one 0:18:52.960 --> 0:18:57.199 picture Christina gave us. There. They are the Wagners and 0:18:57.240 --> 0:19:00.879 the road and smiling together. And just years later, in 0:19:00.960 --> 0:19:04.280 November twenty eighteen, the Wagner family would be arrested for 0:19:04.320 --> 0:19:08.040 the murders of the Rodents. We promised that the day 0:19:08.040 --> 0:19:11.240 would come when the arrest would be made in the 0:19:11.320 --> 0:19:16.159 Pike County massacres today or that day. Billy Wagner, his 0:19:16.200 --> 0:19:18.760 wife Angela, and their two sons, George and Jake, are 0:19:18.800 --> 0:19:22.840 accused of multiple counts of murder. Billy, Angela, George, and 0:19:22.920 --> 0:19:27.160 Jake Wagner were all charged with eight counts of aggravated murder. Additionally, 0:19:27.359 --> 0:19:31.720 Angela Wagner's mother, Rita Newcombe, and Billy's mother Frederica Wagner 0:19:31.840 --> 0:19:36.399 were accused of perjury and obstructing justice for allegedly misleading investigators. 0:19:37.000 --> 0:19:40.080 Angela's mother, Rita Newcombe, was also charged with forge and 0:19:40.160 --> 0:19:44.120 custody documents to cover up the crimes. What was surprising 0:19:44.480 --> 0:19:47.920 was that you had these two grandmothers arrested, Frederico Wagner 0:19:48.400 --> 0:19:52.720 and then Angela Wagner's mother, Rina Newcomb. You had two 0:19:52.840 --> 0:19:56.320 grandmothers being charged with helping to cover up these crimes. 0:19:56.359 --> 0:19:58.720 Because then it your mind kind of goes wild. You 0:19:58.800 --> 0:20:02.040 naturally think, well, did they know before it happened? You know, 0:20:02.080 --> 0:20:03.840 if you're alleging they were part of a cover up. 0:20:04.119 --> 0:20:07.440 What happened, though, Rita Joe Nukam reached a plea deal 0:20:07.520 --> 0:20:09.639 in which the bulk of the charges were dismissed and 0:20:09.640 --> 0:20:13.600 the charges against Frederica Wagner were eventually dropped. The suspicion 0:20:13.640 --> 0:20:16.560 around the family grew, and the ties that bound the 0:20:16.560 --> 0:20:25.960 Wagners and the Rodents came into focus. We're going to 0:20:26.000 --> 0:20:28.320 take a quick break here. We'll be back in a moment. 0:20:38.960 --> 0:20:41.400 We talked earlier about the baby Hannah Rodin and Jake 0:20:41.480 --> 0:20:44.800 Wagner had together in twenty thirteen. The couple and their 0:20:44.880 --> 0:20:47.919 daughter split time between the rod and the Wagner households. 0:20:48.320 --> 0:20:52.119 For everyone involved, the situation worked well. However, when the 0:20:52.160 --> 0:20:55.760 couple broke up in twenty fifteen, the families became bitter rivals. 0:20:56.359 --> 0:21:00.520 But when that news broke that they were were actually 0:21:00.520 --> 0:21:03.280 being indicted and charged. I felt like this must have 0:21:03.320 --> 0:21:07.280 been something personal. The animosity let authorities to pinpoint one 0:21:07.320 --> 0:21:10.520 salient motive in the case. They say that the Wagners 0:21:10.520 --> 0:21:13.760 were obsessed with custody and really obsessed with their bloodline, 0:21:14.280 --> 0:21:18.320 custody of the daughter that Hannah Rodin shared with Jake Wagner. 0:21:18.640 --> 0:21:21.480 The prosecution says that was the heart of the motive 0:21:21.880 --> 0:21:26.040 in this case. They wanted soul custody and they weren't 0:21:26.080 --> 0:21:29.920 going to stop until they got it. Investigative reporter Jodi 0:21:30.000 --> 0:21:33.480 Barr was shocked by these allegations. I have never encountered 0:21:33.480 --> 0:21:37.280 this in my fifteen years of journalism, where an entire 0:21:37.359 --> 0:21:41.640 family is accused of the mass murder of another family 0:21:42.080 --> 0:21:46.800 over what's presumably, if we're to believe the prosecution and 0:21:46.920 --> 0:21:52.600 the investigation, over custody of children. I think that was 0:21:52.640 --> 0:21:55.280 the toughest part for me personally, was dealing with what 0:21:55.400 --> 0:21:59.000 happens to those kids, and then it comes out later 0:21:59.400 --> 0:22:01.359 this was all about the kids and there was a 0:22:01.400 --> 0:22:05.960 fight over the kids. That was that was troubling to 0:22:06.080 --> 0:22:11.600 me personally, Like who would do that to have custody 0:22:11.640 --> 0:22:14.159 and to be able to love and nurture or child 0:22:14.800 --> 0:22:17.600 and yet have that act of violence within themselves to 0:22:17.880 --> 0:22:21.359 do that on their behalf. Those are two things that 0:22:21.400 --> 0:22:25.840 I just can't rectify in my mind. It's human nature 0:22:25.840 --> 0:22:30.080 to ask why why would someone perpetrate something so horrific? 0:22:31.560 --> 0:22:34.760 Think about what that means. We're going to eradicate you 0:22:34.840 --> 0:22:39.400 off the face of the planet. That's that's well, that's 0:22:39.520 --> 0:22:42.080 that's so on a biblical scale, when you begin to 0:22:42.080 --> 0:22:44.520 think of, by God, we're going to make sure that 0:22:44.560 --> 0:22:51.520 they're not just dead there Julius Caesar dead. After their arrest, 0:22:51.680 --> 0:22:55.080 the Wagners continue to maintain their innocence and their family 0:22:55.200 --> 0:22:58.440 was with them every step of the way. Here's grandmother, 0:22:58.480 --> 0:23:01.840 Frederica Wagner, responded to reporters when asked if she thought 0:23:01.880 --> 0:23:06.120 her family was involved in the Roden murders. Absolutely, not 0:23:07.800 --> 0:23:14.480 anywhere near that. Like said, in the two years since 0:23:14.520 --> 0:23:17.240 the arrest, most have considered the Wagners as the most 0:23:17.240 --> 0:23:20.239 likely suspects in the Roden murders. It appeared that they 0:23:20.240 --> 0:23:23.200 were a very close group who discreetly planned this massacre 0:23:23.600 --> 0:23:27.120 for months. But at the same time, it's just beyond 0:23:27.119 --> 0:23:30.199 the pail to kill an entire family over custody. And 0:23:30.320 --> 0:23:34.440 now after Jake Wagner's bombshell plea deal, we wondered was 0:23:34.480 --> 0:23:40.040 the Wagner bond breaking the Waggoners were a cult like family, 0:23:40.200 --> 0:23:43.440 and if what the Waggoners are accused of doing to 0:23:43.640 --> 0:23:48.640 the Rodents, I mean they're accused of doing this together. 0:23:49.200 --> 0:23:52.000 They're accused of trying to cover it up together as 0:23:52.040 --> 0:23:56.600 a family. And the old cliche blood is thicker than water. Well, 0:23:56.880 --> 0:24:00.560 cult like I don't know what the problem ability of 0:24:01.480 --> 0:24:04.879 in a cult one telling on another, especially with the 0:24:04.960 --> 0:24:09.679 consequences that would come down if one Wagoner told on 0:24:09.720 --> 0:24:13.239 another and you know, one went to prison. You know, 0:24:14.400 --> 0:24:17.000 if the state had to depend on one Waggoner telling 0:24:17.000 --> 0:24:20.760 on another, the chances of that happening are likely not 0:24:20.880 --> 0:24:25.320 very good. Now, finally, there may be some answers, you know, 0:24:25.400 --> 0:24:29.359 who went into what home, who died first, why they died, 0:24:30.040 --> 0:24:34.160 you know, why they chose to spare the children. So 0:24:34.600 --> 0:24:39.320 I would just hope we get to hear finally from someone, 0:24:39.560 --> 0:24:43.639 at least in Jake Wagner's case, I mean, where's the remorse? 0:24:44.200 --> 0:24:47.880 You know, is there remorse from what happened? And if not, 0:24:49.040 --> 0:24:51.960 man this is again, if there's a level beyond cold 0:24:52.119 --> 0:24:56.359 blooded evil, If there is a level beyond that, I 0:24:56.400 --> 0:24:58.480 think we have seen it. I don't know that we 0:24:58.560 --> 0:25:02.520 know what to call it. In all, Jake Wagner pled 0:25:02.560 --> 0:25:05.600 guilty to all eight aggravated murder charges as well as 0:25:05.640 --> 0:25:09.720 to fifteen other criminal accounts that included conspiracy, aggravated burglary, 0:25:09.840 --> 0:25:13.879 and tampering with evidence. He also named his father Billy, 0:25:14.400 --> 0:25:18.280 his mother Angela, and brother George Wagner as co conspirators. 0:25:19.200 --> 0:25:22.200 In exchange for his plea, the death sentence was taken 0:25:22.280 --> 0:25:24.840 off the table for him and the rest of his family. 0:25:26.080 --> 0:25:28.600 But perhaps what's most shocking is that Jake is actually 0:25:28.640 --> 0:25:32.560 going to testify against all of his family members. It seems, 0:25:32.560 --> 0:25:34.960 at the bare minimum, there's not a Wagner that's stepping 0:25:34.960 --> 0:25:37.800 out of prison anytime soon. The following is real time 0:25:37.840 --> 0:25:40.879 audio from the courtroom when the prosecution laid out the 0:25:40.960 --> 0:25:45.600 charges against Shake Wagner. The information that Jake provided clearly 0:25:45.600 --> 0:25:49.000 intreated he and each members of his family, to include Billy, 0:25:49.080 --> 0:25:52.160 Angeli and enjoyed Wagner as being guilty of all accounts 0:25:52.160 --> 0:25:55.600 contained lean ditements filed in this manner based on the 0:25:55.600 --> 0:25:58.560 frutality of the information now known about the state, including 0:25:58.560 --> 0:26:02.000 the fourth right statements of the We have overwhelming evidence 0:26:02.040 --> 0:26:04.280 that the defendant and the three co defendant members of 0:26:04.320 --> 0:26:07.600 his family are in fact responsible for planning and carrying 0:26:07.600 --> 0:26:11.000 out the homicides. Jake admitted that in the lake evening 0:26:11.040 --> 0:26:14.119