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The Pike County Murders: A Family Massacre explores the case of the Rhoden family. On April 22, 2016, the small community of Pike County, Ohio, was rocked by the brutal murders of eight Rhoden family members, killed execution-style across four locations. The victims, ranging in age from 16 to 44, were shot primarily in the head, with three young children left unharmed.
The case, known as the Pike County Massacre, became Ohio’s largest murder investigation, involving over 250 law enforcement officials. Initially baffling due to the lack of fingerprints or DNA, the investigation revealed a chilling motive tied to a custody dispute.
Four members of the Wagner family were arrested in 2018, with trials exposing a web of family betrayal. The documentary The Pike County Murders is available on Amazon Prime Video.
Five key details of the Pike County murders
1) The execution-style killings
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The eight victims, Christopher Rhoden Sr., Dana Rhoden, Hanna Rhoden, Frankie Rhoden, Christopher Rhoden Jr., Hannah Gilley, Kenneth Rhoden, and Gary Rhoden, were shot, mostly in the head, in their homes on April 21–22, 2016. Autopsies showed some were shot multiple times, with Christopher Sr. struck nine times, including five in the face, suggesting he was awake, as per Cincinnati.
The killings occurred across three mobile homes and a camper, with no signs of forced entry, indicating familiarity with the victims. The precision and brutality shocked investigators, who noted the killers left no fingerprints or DNA, carefully covering their tracks.
Three children, including a 4-day-old infant, were spared, adding to the mystery. This methodical approach pointed to a planned attack rather than a random act, as per The Guardian.
2) A custody dispute as a motive
The murders stemmed from a custody battle over the 3-year-old daughter of Hanna Rhoden and Edward “Jake” Wagner. The Wagner family, particularly Angela Wagner, was fixated on gaining control of their daughter after Hanna and Jake’s breakup. Weeks before the murders, the Wagners tried to pressure Hanna into signing over custody, which she refused, as per WLWT.
This refusal escalated tensions, leading to the planned killings as Jake wanted power over the Rhodne family. The focus on a young child’s custody as the driving force behind such violence stunned the community and highlighted the Wagner family’s extreme measures, as per WLWT.
3) The Wagner family’s involvement
In November 2018, four Wagner family members, George “Billy” Wagner III, Angela Wagner, George Wagner IV, and Edward “Jake” Wagner, were arrested. Jake, Hanna’s ex-boyfriend, confessed to shooting five victims, while Billy killed three.
Angela planned the murders but stayed home, and George IV was complicit in the planning. The Wagners, a wealthy and insular family, had close ties to the Rhodens, making their betrayal shocking, as per NBC 4.
They fled to Alaska post-murders but returned, leading to their arrests after wiretaps captured incriminating talks.
4) Elaborate cover-up efforts
No fingerprints or DNA were found at the crime scenes, and the murder weapons, firearms with silencers they brought a Brass catcher so as not to leave any bullet casings as evidence, as per The Guardian.
A major breakthrough in the investigation came when a Walmart receipt tied Angela Wagner to a pair of shoes that matched bloody footprints found at the crime scenes. Further progress was made through wiretaps and surveillance, including placing listening devices in vehicles used by the Wagner family, as per Local 12.
These efforts uncovered incriminating conversations that pointed to their involvement. In November 2018, authorities arrested Edward “Jake” Wagner, his parents, Angela and George “Billy” Wagner III, and his brother George Wagner IV.
5) Impact on the surviving children
Three children were spared in the massacre, each left behind at a separate crime scene. Among them was a newborn, just four days old, Kylie Rhoden, found lying next to her mother, Hanna Rhoden. Another, 6-month-old Ruger Rhoden, was discovered between the bodies of his parents, Frankie Rhoden and Hannah Gilley.
Now around 8 years old, Ruger’s current whereabouts have not been publicly disclosed. The third child, a 3-year-old Sophia, became the center of the custody battle that allegedly drove the Wagners to commit the murders. She was placed in state custody following the family's arrest, and her location has been kept sealed for her protection.
Brentley Rhoden, the son of Frankie Rhoden and Chelsea Robinson, now lives with his mother in Portsmouth. The circumstances of the third surviving child's care remain private, as per Cincinnati.
Watch The Pike County Murders on Amazon Prime Video.
