PIKE COUNTY, Ohio — The fate of George Wagner IV will be determined later this month. According to court officials, sentencing in the case has been set for December 19.
Wagner was convicted on 22 counts for his role in the mass slaying of 8 members of the Rhoden family.
It has been six years since the killings of Dana Manley Rhoden, 37; her ex-husband, Christopher Rhoden Sr., 40; their sons, Christopher Rhoden Jr., 16, and Clarence “Frankie” Rhoden, 20; their daughter, Hanna Rhoden, 19, the mother of Jake Wagner’s daughter; Frankie’s fiancée, Hannah Gilley, 20; Kenneth Rhoden, 44, a brother to Chris Sr; and Gary Rhoden, 38, a cousin to Kenneth and Chris Sr.
A Pike County jury found Wagner guilty on all counts following a lengthy trial.
Authorities say the murders stemmed from a dispute over custody of a child that George Wagner’s brother, Jake Wagner, had with Hanna Rhoden.
George Wagner’s parents and brother were also charged. The Wagners spent months planning the killings, motivated by a custody dispute, prosecutors said.
Two of the Wagners, Jake, and Angela, pleaded guilty last year to their roles in the slayings and testified for the state against George as part of their plea deal.
The case against the father, Billy Wagner, is expected to go to trial next year.