sws4420
05-30-2005, 03:54 PM
Shootings happened after Ohio family, friends gathered for his graduation party.
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/050530/050530_moody_ccol.vmedium.jpg
Scott Moody, the 18-year-old suspected of killing his mother, grandparents and two teenaged girls, is seen in an ad in the May 24, 2005, Bellefontaine Examiner taken out by his family.
BELLEFONTAINE, Ohio - Authorities investigating the deaths of six people found at neighboring farmhouses said Monday that an 18-year-old who was about to graduate from high school is believed to have fatally shot his grandparents, mother and two family friends before killing himself.
The alleged shooter’s younger sister was wounded and was in critical condition Monday.
The shootings at two farmhouses early Sunday came after friends and relatives gathered for a celebration Saturday in advance of Sunday evening graduation ceremonies for Scott Moody.
Logan County Sheriff Michael Henry said he was unsure if authorities would ever find out why Moody committed the shootings, “but we’re going to try.”
Henry identified the victims as Moody’s grandparents Sharyl Shafer, 66, and Gary Shafer, 67, who were found dead in one farmhouse; and Moody’s mother, Sheri Shafer, 37, and two friends, Megan Karus, 19, and Paige Harshbarger, 14. They were found dead in the other home along with the wounded survivor, 15-year-old Stacy Moody, and the body of Moody himself.
Suspect 'was a great kid'
Bernadette Pachmayer, superintendent for the local school district, told the Columbus Dispatch that Moody "was a great kid" who was well-liked and a member of the Future Farmers of America.
The victims were shot with a .22-caliber rifle, Henry said.
Henry said Stacy Moody called a friend on her cell phone and the friend then called authorities at 10:46 a.m. Sunday.
Scott Moody and Karus were to have graduated Sunday afternoon from Riverside High School in nearby De Graff, the sheriff’s office said. The school held commencement as scheduled, and school officials announced the shootings to the crowd afterward.
'Never seen anything like this'
The two farmhouses are about a quarter-mile apart along a two-lane state route northwest of Columbus, and the same family owns both, authorities said. Fields where corn and soybeans are grown surround the white-paneled, two-story homes.
Detectives were interviewing friends and family members of the victims. “I’ve being doing this for 35 years and I’ve never seen anything like this,” Logan County Sheriff’s Lt. Chuck Stout said.
People in the community of 13,000 drifted in and out of the sheriff’s office, hugging and crying, throughout the afternoon. One woman nearly collapsed moments after arriving and speaking with people at the office. Deputies had to help her inside.
“Dealing with a small community like this, everyone knows everyone,” the sheriff said.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8028084/
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/050530/050530_moody_ccol.vmedium.jpg
Scott Moody, the 18-year-old suspected of killing his mother, grandparents and two teenaged girls, is seen in an ad in the May 24, 2005, Bellefontaine Examiner taken out by his family.
BELLEFONTAINE, Ohio - Authorities investigating the deaths of six people found at neighboring farmhouses said Monday that an 18-year-old who was about to graduate from high school is believed to have fatally shot his grandparents, mother and two family friends before killing himself.
The alleged shooter’s younger sister was wounded and was in critical condition Monday.
The shootings at two farmhouses early Sunday came after friends and relatives gathered for a celebration Saturday in advance of Sunday evening graduation ceremonies for Scott Moody.
Logan County Sheriff Michael Henry said he was unsure if authorities would ever find out why Moody committed the shootings, “but we’re going to try.”
Henry identified the victims as Moody’s grandparents Sharyl Shafer, 66, and Gary Shafer, 67, who were found dead in one farmhouse; and Moody’s mother, Sheri Shafer, 37, and two friends, Megan Karus, 19, and Paige Harshbarger, 14. They were found dead in the other home along with the wounded survivor, 15-year-old Stacy Moody, and the body of Moody himself.
Suspect 'was a great kid'
Bernadette Pachmayer, superintendent for the local school district, told the Columbus Dispatch that Moody "was a great kid" who was well-liked and a member of the Future Farmers of America.
The victims were shot with a .22-caliber rifle, Henry said.
Henry said Stacy Moody called a friend on her cell phone and the friend then called authorities at 10:46 a.m. Sunday.
Scott Moody and Karus were to have graduated Sunday afternoon from Riverside High School in nearby De Graff, the sheriff’s office said. The school held commencement as scheduled, and school officials announced the shootings to the crowd afterward.
'Never seen anything like this'
The two farmhouses are about a quarter-mile apart along a two-lane state route northwest of Columbus, and the same family owns both, authorities said. Fields where corn and soybeans are grown surround the white-paneled, two-story homes.
Detectives were interviewing friends and family members of the victims. “I’ve being doing this for 35 years and I’ve never seen anything like this,” Logan County Sheriff’s Lt. Chuck Stout said.
People in the community of 13,000 drifted in and out of the sheriff’s office, hugging and crying, throughout the afternoon. One woman nearly collapsed moments after arriving and speaking with people at the office. Deputies had to help her inside.
“Dealing with a small community like this, everyone knows everyone,” the sheriff said.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8028084/