Four reported missing 11/12/10 Apple Valley OH (1 alive - 3 found dead)

[Tamikosmom]

http://www.10tv.com/live/content/local/stories/2010/11/14/story-mount-vernon-ohio-missing-girl-found.html?sid=102

Missing Girl Found Safe; Man In Custody
Sunday,  November 14, 2010 11:45 AM
Updated: Sunday,  November 14, 2010 6:46 PM
WBNS-10TV
 
MOUNT VERNON, Ohio — A 13-year-old who was missing since Wednesday was found safe inside the basement of a home on Sunday morning.

Sarah Maynard was bound and gagged when authorities entered the house, located at 49 Columbus Rd., at about 8 a.m., Knox County Sheriff David Barber said.

Matthew J. Hoffman was taken into custody inside the home and was charged with one count of kidnapping.  Additional charges were expected to be filed, Barber said.

"We believe (Maynard) was taken sometime on Wednesday and (Hoffman) has had control of ever since," Barber said.

Maynard, her younger brother Kody, 11; their mother, Tina Herrmann, 32; and a family friend, Stephanie Sprang, 41, have been missing since Wednesday.

Barber said that he believes Hoffman, 30, abducted Sarah Maynard.

"It's obvious that (Hoffman) found his way to her and to their home," Barber said.

Barber would not say how authorities learned that the girl was inside Hoffman's home.

Hoffman's neighbors said that they heard a loud noise at about 8 a.m. at the time law enforcement entered his home.

"We were hopeful that we would find more than one (person), but our information was most definitely that Sarah was going to be in that house," Barber said.

Investigators have not given up hope that the other three are still alive, 10TV's Jason Frazer reported.  On Sunday, dozens of people searched nearby Foundation Park for anything that could lead them to the three missing people.

"This doesn't happen in Mount Vernon," said Ronnetta Shults, who assisted in searching the park.

Maynard was taken to Knox Community Hospital for evaluation.  She was expected to be OK, 10TV News reported.

Hoffman also has a home on Apple Valley Drive in nearby Howard, Ohio, the same street where the Maynard children disappeared with Herrmann and Sprang.

Court records showed that Hoffman was convicted of setting fire to a Steamboat Springs, Colo., condominium complex, causing $2 million in damage.  Investigators said that in 2000, he used 10 gallons of gasoline to commit the arson.

Hoffman admitted the arson to cover up a burglary that he committed there, according to court records and news accounts from the time.

Sixteen people were evacuated and prosecutors said that it was a "miracle" that nobody died.

In 2001, Hoffman was sentenced to eight years in prison.

"I don't want to make (your sentence) too long," the judge said.  "I want you to have hope and take advantage of the programs in prison."

Hoffman was supposed to pay $2 million restitution.  Court records showed that he paid about $5,000.  It was not clear from court records whether Hoffman was still on parole, 10 Investigates' Paul Aker reported.

Hoffman's neighbors along Columbus Road said that he moved into the five-bedroom home about a year ago.  They said that he lived alone and had a history of strange behavior that made them uncomfortable.

"At first, (Hoffman) seemed like he was OK," said Donna Davis, his next door neighbor.  "Then, I started making my kids come in when he was outside."

Davis told 10TV's Glenn McEntyre that initially, Hoffman seemed more odd than menacing.

"He was a weirdo," Davis said.  "If you look back here in the tree, there's a hammock where he would sit and watch people.  He's just different.  He would always walk over to the gravel pit with bags and sometimes not bring them back.  Sometimes he would."

The former gravel pit that Davis mentioned is now known as Foundation Park, a few blocks from Hoffman's home.

"I told the FBI this morning, 'Go check the gravel pit if they're looking for anything, because that's where he always walked,'" Davis said.

Volunteers, including Sprang's brother, searched the park on Sunday.

Davis said that although she saw and heard nothing strange in the days leading up to Sunday's arrest but over the last four days, she was growing increasingly wary Hoffman.

"He said to my friend that he wanted to punch my kid in the face, and my kid is 8. So the guy's disturbed, obviously," Davis said.

Two people who spoke with McEntyre said that Hoffman had recently assaulted a former girlfriend.

Hoffman was expected to be in court on Monday, 10TV News reported.

No one has seen or heard from the missing women or children since Wednesday, when Herrmann failed to show up for work.  On Thursday, both of her children were absent from school.

Barber said that special attention was being paid to blood that was found inside Herrmann's home.  Barber called the amount of blood "unusual."

"It is obvious that someone was injured in the house," Barber said.

Kody A. Maynard is 4 feet, 10 inches tall, weighing 70 pounds, with brown hair and hazel eyes.

Sprang is 5 feet, 3 inches tall, weighing 110 pounds, with blonde hair and green eyes.

Herrmann is 5 feet, 6 inches tall, weighing 122 pounds, with sandy blonde hair and blue eyes.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the Knox County Sheriff's Office at 740-397-3333.

 

[klaasend]

http://www.myspace.com/hotmatty4u1992

ummmmmm....that looks like him, but things don't add up, lol.

Nose completely different - not the same guy.

[Leroy]

Caption reads - The house circled in the red is the house Sarah was found in. The house is located on Columbus Rd in Mount Vernon.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=49252&id=174173612594279#!/pages/Pray-for-The-Maynard-Kids/174173612594279

[Tamikosmom]

I read in one of the articles that his parents lived just 4 or 5 houses from where the victims lived. Maybe they could have told the police something.

Missing Girl Found Safe; Man Charged With Kidnapping - 3 others still missing
By Alex Mazer
Published: November 14, 2010
Updated: November 14, 2010 - 2:24 PM 

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio --The Knox County Sheriff confirmed Sunday afternoon that the missing 13-year-old girl from Howard, Ohio, was found bound and gagged in a home in Clinton Township.
 
Sheriff David Barger said she has been removed safely and is reported in good condition, although being checked out by medical experts. Three others reported missing in the same incident have not been located.
 
The sheriff  said that the owner and occupant of the home where Sarah Maynard was found has been arrested and they hope he will lead him to the three persons still missing.
 
The sheriff said that Matthew J. Hoffman has been charged with Sarah Maynard's kidnapping.
 
Sheriff Barber said Hoffman  listed two residences.  One was at 49 Columbus Road where Sarah was found.   The second was at 3730 Apple Valley Drive.
 
The second address is a home owned by Hoffman's parents and is within walking distance to the home from which the four people were reported missing last Wednesday.
 
Today's events began when The Mount Vernon News reported law enforcement officers forced entry into the home on Columbus Street around 7:45 a.m.
 
Neighbors at the scene at that time told  NBC 4 a man by the name of Matt Hoffman was taken into custody from the home. Moments later, a young girl was brought out from the home on a gurney, covered and taken by ambulance to a local hospital.
 
One of the neighbors who participated in Saturday's search party tells NBC 4's Patrick Preston the uncle of Tina Herrmann told her 13-year-old Sarah has been found and is being life-flighted to Nationwide Children's Hospital.
 
Another neighbor tells NBC 4 they saw a body bag being taken from the home.  This was not verified subsequently by law enforcement.
 
Still missing are Sara Maynard's brother, Kody, her mother Tina Herrmann, 32, and a family friend, Stephanie Sprang, 41.
 
The Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) is currently on scene.
 
http://www2.nbc4i.com/news/2010/nov/14/14/1-person-found-inside-mount-vernon-home-1-taken-cu-ar-290645/

[Tamikosmom]

1 found; man in custody; search continues

By George Breithaupt
November 14, 2010 4:34 pm EST

MOUNT VERNON — An early morning raid at 49 Columbus Road by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office and the Mount Vernon Police Department’s Emergency Services Unit resulted in the rescue of one of the four people missing from Apple Valley since last Wednesday.

According to Knox County Sheriff David Barber, Sarah Maynard, 13, was discovered bound and gagged in the basement of the Columbus Road residence. Homeowner Matthew Hoffman was in the home at the time of the raid. He was taken into custody and charged with one count of kidnapping.

“We have good news to report today,” Barber said. “We have located and rescued Sarah Maynard at approximately 8 a.m. this morning. She was being held against her will and she was in good condition with non-life threatening injuries. She was taken to the hospital for evaluation. She has been interviewed somewhat. In the house with her was an individual from Mount Vernon. He is now in the Knox County Jail currently charged with kidnapping. His name is Matthew J. Hoffman and he is 30 years old. We believe Sarah was under the control of Mr. Hoffman since last Wednesday in one form or another and at one location or another.”

Knox Community Hospital confirmed Sarah had been taken there for evaluation and was transferred to Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus this afternoon.

Hoffman gave sheriff’s deputies two addresses, one was the residence where he was arrested. The second was 3730 Apple Valley Drive, Howard.

“That address is within walking distance of the crime scene (in Apple Valley ) and is owned by his mother and step-father.

Additional charges are expected to be filed as this investigation continues. Unfortunately, as of this time we have not located Tina, Stephanie or Kody. The investigation continues. Hoffman has not given us any information and has not been cooperative at this point.”

Still missing are Maynard’s mother, Tina Herrmann, 32,; her brother, Kody Maynard, 11; and family friend Stephanie Sprang, 41, all of Howard.

Barber added Hoffman does have a prior conviction for arson in Colorado for which he did prison time.

“We are unsure at this time if (Hoffman) was acquainted with the family,” Barber said. “That remains to be seen as the investigation continues.”

Barber said the raid was the result of investigative efforts by detectives of the sheriff’s office. He denied the response was to reports of gunshots at the house or because someone escaped from the house early this morning. He also stated the coroner had not been called in after the raid and that no bodies were found in the residence.

“The residence on Columbus Road is currently being processed by the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation,” Barber explained. “It is being considered a crime scene and treated as such.”

Barber told the News that the incident was still being treated as a missing persons case.

“As of right now we have no one we are aware of is deceased,” Barber said.

Barber added the collection of evidence at the Apple Valley residence was completed Saturday evening.

“Tomorrow (Monday) we hope DNA testing can begin,” he said. “We have been assured this will be considered a priority case by the BCI&I.”

http://www.mountvernonnews.com/local/10/11/13/1-found-man-in-custody-search-continues

[Nut44x4]

http://www.myspace.com/hotmatty4u1992

ummmmmm....that looks like him, but things don't add up, lol.

Nose completely different - not the same guy.

Perhaps all of the links/posts relating to 'HotMatty' should be removed? Afterall ... he is looking for love (in all the wrong places). ?? Give me an AOK' and I'll do it. You know how much I love my 'delete' button

[Nut44x4]

Okay....let's see if I can explain this.  The man arrested lives at 49 Columbus Rd., Mount Vernon OH

Sprang lived on Magers Road and Herrmann on King Beach Drive in Howard Township (Apple Valley area) which is apx. 10 miles from Mount Vernon.

In a previous post, it simply stated:
Mount Vernon is about 50 miles northeast of Columbus, Ohio. ............... just to give a general location of where Mount Vernon is located.

K?

Voice of reason, thanks.

I still would like to know how the police figured it out.

Well, this 'voice of reason' tells me that if he only wanted the girl, there would be no reason to keep the others alive.

Perhaps they found his DNA in the woman's home, he did have a criminal record. Or perhaps like others mentioned...his mother lived nearby the woman's home.

[Itaryl Moosee]

http://www.10tv.com/live/content/local/stories/2010/11/14/story-mount-vernon-ohio-missing-girl-found.html?sid=102

"We were hopeful that we would find more than one (person), but our information was most definitely that Sarah was going to be in that house," Barber said.

So, they KNEW that she would be there.

I don't think the information came from Hoffman himself, since the news reports say he is not cooperating. So, who else would've known that at least the teenager would be there?

One of his neighbors mentioned a fire Hoffman supposedly made on his backyard on Wednesday night, maybe burning evidence?

I noticed the police tape includes the house next door, or is it my eyes that are going bad?

[sleddogs]

Police block off Ohio park near suspect's house


http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9JGJM380&show_article=1

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (AP) - Police cruisers have blocked off an Ohio park near a house where a 13-year-old girl was found bound and gagged and a man was arrested.

Mount Vernon police Capt. George Hartz says an officer patrolling overnight found items in the park possibly related to the girl and the ongoing search for her missing mother, brother and another woman.

Thirty-year-old Matthew Hoffman was taken into custody Sunday at his home about two blocks from the park, where neighbors said he was often seen. He's been charged with kidnapping.

Hartz would not say what was found in the park. He says it's closed until a determination is made on whether it's a crime scene.

The Knox County Sheriff's office says no updated information will be released before Monday afternoon.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (AP)—Ten miles from home, a 13-year-old girl was found bound and gagged but alive four days after disappearing with her family. The whereabouts of her mother, brother and another woman remained a mystery, however.

A man was arrested Sunday at the home where Sarah Maynard was found in this central Ohio city, and authorities hope he will provide information leading to the others, Knox County Sheriff David Barber said.

"We were hopeful that we would find more than one" of the missing people in Hoffman's house, Barber said. "Our information was definite that it was most likely that Sarah was going to be in that house."

Barber did not say what led investigators to the two-story tan-sided house where they found the girl bound in the basement. Matthew J. Hoffman, 30, was arrested and charged with kidnapping.

Barber said more charges are expected against Hoffman, who lives at the home about 40 miles north of Columbus.

Hoffman was being held in the county jail, where personnel would not comment on whether he had an attorney. A bond hearing was expected to be held Monday.

Barber said the girl was hospitalized in good condition, but he would give no details and did not say if she had been sexually abused.

Sarah, her mother, 32-year-old Tina Herrmann, her 10-year-old brother, Kody, and Herrmann's 41-year-old friend Stephanie Sprang disappeared Wednesday from Herrmann's home in nearby Howard. Barber said DNA testing on blood found in that house was expected to begin Monday.

Authorities believe the girl had been "under the control" of Hoffman since Wednesday, when she and her brother last attended school, the sheriff said. He did not know if Hoffman was connected to either Herrmann or Sprang, but said he is not the ex-boyfriend of either woman.

"At this time, whether he's connected to the family or whether he connected himself to the family ... a lot of that remains to be seen as the investigation continues," Barber said.

Authorities had talked to the girl but would not release any details because the investigation is ongoing, Barber said.

Authorities blocked off about a half block on either side of the home as they investigated early Sunday afternoon, keeping people from entering or leaving about a half dozen homes. But by late Sunday afternoon, the only sign of investigative activity was red and white evidence tape sealing the front door of the home.

The house with green shutters and front door and a large television antenna on the roof sits in a lower-middle-income neighborhood with two bars within a block. Holly grows through the weathered slats of the porch. A sheet covered one window, and blinds were pulled down on the rest.

Dawna Davis, 35, who lives next door to Hoffman, said she told her children to stay indoors when he was out. She said he moved in alone about a year ago and that a girlfriend lived with him temporarily with her son until about a month ago.

"He would sit and listen to us up in a tree. He had a hammock and he would sit there and listen to us," she said. "He was just different. He was very different."

Davis said Hoffman did tree trimming work and had built a fire Wednesday night in his backyard, where there was a mound of ashes Sunday with tree parts on it. She said he walked to a nearby park with a lake almost every day and was a "nature person" who collected leaves.

Attempts to reach relatives of Hoffman and of Sarah were unsuccessful Sunday.

Herrmann was reported missing Wednesday when she did not show up for work at a local Dairy Queen. Barber has said blood indicating an injury had been found in her home, where Sprang's vehicle was in the driveway.

Herrmann's pickup truck had been found Thursday night near the Kenyon College campus, leading to a lockdown at the school.

[MuffyBee]

Thank you for the update, Sled.  Good to "see" you.     Is the clock ticking for the other three that may be alive somewhere, or have they been murdered?  I fear it's the latter, especially with Matthew Hoffman not cooperating.   

[sleddogs]

Thank you for the update, Sled.  Good to "see" you.     Is the clock ticking for the other three that may be alive somewhere, or have they been murdered?  I fear it's the latter, especially with Matthew Hoffman not cooperating.   

Hi MuffyBee,

I'm afraid this is going to end badly too. I Pray for the girl that was saved.

[Pebbles]

Thank God that Sarah was found alive; and praying the other 3 are also found alive! 

Here is a link for the live search if anyone is interested.
http://www.10tv.com/live/content/video/breaking.html

[sleddogs]

Police block off Ohio park in search for rescued 13-year-old's family

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40193670/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/

Pictures up of suspect.

[Pebbles]

Thanks for the link! That guy's pic gives me cold chills! I'm really praying that he isn't as evil as his eyes look.

Police block off Ohio park in search for rescued 13-year-old's family

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40193670/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/

Pictures up of suspect.

[sleddogs]

Thank God that Sarah was found alive; and praying the other 3 are also found alive! 

Here is a link for the live search if anyone is interested.
http://www.10tv.com/live/content/video/breaking.html

Thanks, looks like they were loading bags of evidence into the white truck?

[no rose colored glasses]

Okay....let's see if I can explain this.  The man arrested lives at 49 Columbus Rd., Mount Vernon OH

Sprang lived on Magers Road and Herrmann on King Beach Drive in Howard Township (Apple Valley area) which is apx. 10 miles from Mount Vernon.

In a previous post, it simply stated:
Mount Vernon is about 50 miles northeast of Columbus, Ohio. ............... just to give a general location of where Mount Vernon is located.

K?

Voice of reason, thanks.

I still would like to know how the police figured it out.

Well, this 'voice of reason' tells me that if he only wanted the girl, there would be no reason to keep the others alive.

Perhaps they found his DNA in the woman's home, he did have a criminal record. Or perhaps like others mentioned...his mother lived nearby the woman's home.

I don't understand if he only wanted the girl, why would he have taken the others? Since I read that his parent's home is nearby the families home maybe he had his eye on the young girl for awhile

[SuzieQ]

http://www.10tv.com/live/content/local/stories/2010/11/15/story-howard-missing-girl-found-man-charged-kidnapping.html?sid=102

Police Block Off Park As Mount Vernon Search Continues
Monday,  November 15, 2010 6:20 AM
Updated: Monday,  November 15, 2010 10:20 AM
WBNS-10TV
 
HOWARD, Ohio — Police on Monday blocked off a park near a home where a teenage girl was found bound and gagged over the weekend.
Police apparently found items in Foundation Park that may be connected to the 13-year-old girl and three other people missing since Wednesday.

Investigators gathered evidence that filled a two-foot bag, 10TV's Tino Ramos reported.

Foundation Park is located south of downtown Mount Vernon, a few blocks away from the home where authorities found Sarah Maynard on Sunday morning.

 

[Pebbles]

[[/quote]

Thanks, looks like they were loading bags of evidence into the white truck?
[/quote]

Yes it does but I can't tell what they have found.  I'm surprised the news channel is allowed to show it live.  Perhaps they aren't expecting to find bodies....at least I sure hope they find live ones if they do.

[Itaryl Moosee]

"At first, (Hoffman) seemed like he was OK," said Donna Davis, his next door neighbor.  "Then, I started making my kids come in when he was outside."

Davis told 10TV's Glenn McEntyre that initially, Hoffman seemed more odd than menacing.

"He was a weirdo," Davis said.  "If you look back here in the tree, there's a hammock where he would sit and watch people.  He's just different.  He would always walk over to the gravel pit with bags and sometimes not bring them back.  Sometimes he would."

The former gravel pit that Davis mentioned is now known as Foundation Park, a few blocks from Hoffman's home.

"I told the FBI this morning, 'Go check the gravel pit if they're looking for anything, because that's where he always walked,'" Davis said.

Volunteers, including Sprang's brother, searched the park on Sunday.

http://www.10tv.com/live/content/local/stories/2010/11/14/story-mount-vernon-ohio-missing-girl-found.html?sid=102

[4 Donks]

http://channels.isp.netscape.com/news/story.jsp?flok=FF-APO-+&idq=/ff/story/1001%2F20101115%2F1374.htm&sc=+&floc=NI-ne1
     
 
Lake searched near Ohio kidnap suspect's house
DOUG WHITEMAN
Associated Press

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (AP) — Investigators in a boat are searching an Ohio park lake near a home where a 13-year-old girl was found bound and gagged in the basement.

The park in Mount Vernon was closed on Monday, initially because a city police officer found clothing that he thought had blood on it. But Capt. George Hartz says tests didn't find any human blood on the clothing.

The girl's mother, brother and another woman are missing. A man arrested when the girl was rescued Sunday has been charged with kidnapping her.

A court clerk says 30-year-old Matthew Hoffman is tentatively scheduled to appear before a judge Tuesday afternoon.

Hartz says police temporarily reopened the park at midmorning but state and county authorities closed it again a short time later to search the lake.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.