Four members of the Wagner family were charged in the 2016 murders of eight members of the Rhoden family in Pike County, Ohio. The first trial — of eldest son George Wagner IV — began this week.
Rita Newcomb, 66, had been accused of forging custody documents and lying to a grand jury and investigators in an effort to cover up the execution-style murders of eight members of the Rhoden family.
The 76-year-old grandmother, who is facing charges of obstruction, is an institution in Pike County known by some as a beloved Sunday school teacher who is always giving back to her community.
Investigators believe the slaughter of eight family members in Piketon, Ohio could have been triggered by a custody dispute between one-time lovers Jake Wagner and Hanna Rhoden.
With eight members of one family shot dead and another family later arrested, the sprawling interpersonal ties of the Rhoden and Wagner families boosted interest in the case.
