HOCKING COUNTY, Ohio — A Hocking County man is scheduled back in court today for a change of plea/ sentencing hearing.
Franklin “TJ” Varney Jr. faces multiple felony charges of rape, GSI, and child endangerment.
Varney made headlines earlier this year when deputies with the Hocking County Sheriff’s Office and the Logan-Hocking Special Response Team executed a search warrant at a residence on Bear Run Road. The raid was in response to a rape investigation involving Varney.
Upon arrival at the home, law enforcement personnel found the residence “in deplorable condition.” Also located in the home was a three-year-old child “locked inside a cage, which was secured with zip ties.”
The cage, the sheriff’s office said at the time, was filled with “bugs, soiled bedding, and a cup full of spoiled milk.” Reports say a two-year-old child was also found in the residence with a methamphetamine pipe.
The parents, officials said, left the children and fled the scene before SRT made entry.
A grandmother at the house was also detained at the scene and later taken into custody.
The children, following the raid, were turned over to the care of the South Central Ohio Job and Family Services.
After a nationwide warrant was issued for the parents, they were taken into custody the following day after a short foot pursuit.
The mother, Megan Smith, was also charged with felony child endangerment. She is scheduled to go to trial in February. The grandmother, Ella Webb, faces the same. Her trial is scheduled for later this month.