The Girl in the Leaves

by Robert Scott

  Dr. Ogle added that before the autopsies began, she met with the victims’ family members to answer their questions and offer support to them. Ogle said, “My priority was the family. I wanted to make sure I’d taken good care of explaining things to them before I spoke about the victims to other people. People react differently to grief, each experiencing loss in their own way, and as death investigations proceed, the bereaved require different answers as they process their loss. Some people need all the forensic details in order to get closure. Some people can move on without all the details.”

  Ogle added that she hoped the autopsies would help in the prosecution of the case. “We’re not in a hurry at this point. It’s critical to get every detail right in coming up with a cause of death and to be able to provide family and loved ones with the answers they need.”

  Asked by a reporter how the case had affected her, she answered, “It would be impossible not to be emotional about this. We’re all emotional about this, but we approach it in a scientific way, not allowing our emotions to get in front of us.

  “Our entire community has been wounded in this tragedy, and words can’t describe the sorrow felt by all. Knox County is one of the warmest, kindest and most beautiful communities I’ve ever witnessed. I firmly believe that no one person can ever take that away from us. The story of Sarah Maynard’s rescue will forever be remembered as an example of extraordinary detective work and bravery.”

  A follow-up question asked if this particular case had affected her differently from past cases. Without hesitating, she said, “Yes.”

  * * *

  Farther away, Larry, Sarah and the rest of the Maynard family huddled inside their home, determined not to speak with the media clamoring outside their door. To Larry it felt as if all of the planets had fallen on his head. He was dazed to the point of inertia. He couldn’t eat. He could barely sleep, only dozing off on the couch once in a while. Even though it seemed like the walls of his house were closing in on him, he couldn’t stand the thought of going outside and facing the media onslaught. The last thing he wanted at that point was to be besieged by questions. It was his wife, Tracy, who had to answer the phone. Soon she even stopped doing that. Most of the calls were from news agencies badgering them for information.

  A neighbor was sent out on runs to bring in food for the family. All she would say to reporters was that when she saw Sarah, the girl looked physically well.

  In fact, Sarah was showing a remarkable resilience. One of Larry Maynard’s neighbors told a reporter, “When Sarah first arrived at her dad’s house, she smiled and waved. It brought tears to my eyes. My daughter has played with Sarah on past visits.”

  And another neighbor said, “When Sarah’s ready to face the world again, she’ll have friends.”

  At that time, however, Larry had a sign placed on his front door that stated, “We are not ready to talk at this time.”

  Greg Borders, who had also said very little to reporters, met with one after the news broke about the recovery of the bodies. He said, “When the police let me back into that house for the first time, I was numb. Once it hit me, I had to get out of the house. I’ll never go back to that house!”

  Greg’s uncle told a reporter, “Tina was very compassionate and caring. She would give you the shirt off her back. Those kids came before anyone else.”

  In the Apple Valley area, Stephanie Sprang’s uncle, Chris Thompson, thanked the volunteer searchers for all their efforts and said, “We’re going to need time to deal with this.” And friends of Stephanie spoke once again about how close Tina and Stephanie had been. They said the two were nearly inseparable, and that they were both hardworking mothers who’d loved their children.

  * * *

  Grief and shock now ran rampant throughout the area. On the Facebook page dedicated to the victims, were one posting after another by individuals who’d known them, and many more by people who had never met them. One posting stated, “My heart is broken. God put your loving arms of comfort around Sarah and all those in mourning.”

  A makeshift memorial to the victims had sprung up around a large tree near the house on King Beach Road. Friends and people who didn’t even know the victims brought stuffed animals, flowers and other mementos. They also brought purple ribbons to remember Tina, Stephanie, Kody and Sarah. In fact, by now the tree was festooned with numerous purple ribbons blowing in the breeze. There were dozens of balloons, flowers, candles and baseballs. Someone had written on one baseball, “We love you Kody!”

  A man named Mike Page, who had dated Stephanie Sprang seven years before, showed up with an armload of purple ribbons. He told a reporter, “Stephanie is going to be sadly missed. I don’t think for anyone it’s sunk in yet.”

  And at the Dairy Queen where Tina had worked, the sign that had been there all week was altered. Instead of “Pray for our missing families,” the word “missing” was now removed so that it stated, “Pray for our families.” The Dairy Queen also donated a dollar from every Blizzard sold to a fund to help Sarah and Stephanie Sprang’s children. The store sold 2,532 Blizzards in a very short period of time.

  As the sun went down on the cold evening of November 19 members of Stephanie’s and Tina’s extended families gathered at Apple Lake for a memorial service and vigil. Many friends and volunteers were there as well. They lit small tea-light candles encased in cupcake holders like small boats. These candles were then set adrift on the waters of the lake. They glowed in the dark with tiny bright points of light.

  The Reverend Lee Cubie of the Howard United Methodist Church addressed the crowd. “We’re here tonight to show that we can raise a light in this world that is greater than any darkness or gloom that may over come us.”

  Julie Arthur was there with her sixteen-year-old daughter, Paige, and said, “This is Knox County. We support each other. It doesn’t matter if you knew them. They were mothers. They were children.”

  * * *

  On Friday, November 19, 2010, Chief Forensic Pathologist C. Jeff Lee, who was working with Jennifer Ogle and Robert Raker on the case, began the autopsy process. The task was formidable, given the state of the body parts. Lee noted that besides the remains in the official body bags, there were “several black plastic trash bags containing portions of three dismembered bodies intermingled with clothing, towels and personal possessions.” It was even difficult to differentiate which clothing had been worn by Tina Herrmann and which by Stephanie Sprang.

  After that was sorted out, Lee noted that the upper part of a gray hooded sweatshirt that had belonged to Tina revealed three cuts, as did the upper portion of her back. The upper right portion of the front of Tina’s T-shirt also showed a three-inch cut and a one-inch cut.

  Lee stated, “The well-developed, adult female body [Tina] is disarticulated at the neck, across the upper abdomen, bilateral shoulder joints, bilateral hip joints and bilateral knee joints.” A plain gold ring was present on the second finger of the right hand, and there was no polish on the nails.

  Several postmortem wounds were identified, including two abrasions near the right eye and jagged wounds on the posterior scalp and back of the neck. There were a few incised wounds near the left shoulder. But what really stood out was a fourteen-inch vertically oriented incised wound running from the upper portion of the chest to the lower part of the torso. This was most likely the fatal wound. There were smaller incised wounds lower on the torso, and wounds on the hands and fingers, as well as some wounds on the left thigh. Actual deep stab wounds were catalogued later in the report.

  Tina’s heart was determined to be of a normal size and shape, but there was an incised wound to the aorta. The lungs had suffered stab wounds as well, with three stab wounds to the upper right lung, and two in its lower portions. There were three stab wounds to the left lung. There were no fractures to the skull, though there was a hemorrhage near the parieta
l bones.

  Stephanie’s autopsy was much the same as Tina’s had been. She too had suffered from several deep knife wounds, as well as additional nonfatal wounds. She also had abrasions and perimortem bruises on her body. Not unlike Tina, Stephanie’s body had been dismembered at the joints and showed a certain amount of sophistication in the cutting technique.

  Kody’s autopsy revealed seven deep stab wounds to the torso, including one on the right upper chest, described as a “gaping stab wound passing downward, backward and to the left through the subcutaneous tissue.” There was a similar wound to the left lung. The left part of his abdomen had sustained a stab wound one inch in depth. And there were four stab wounds to the back, all of them about one and a half inches deep. Lee also noted that there appeared to be blunt force trauma to the head, and as with the other bodies, “postmortem dismemberment with an attempt at concealment.”

  From the victims’ bodies, it was evident that Matthew Hoffman knew how to kill someone with a knife. In all three cases, the cause of death was stabbing, not blunt force trauma or other means.

  * * *

  Gary Ludwig, a supervisor with the wildlife division of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, said that the tree in which the bodies had been found was being cut down to keep it from “becoming a sightseeing thing.” The last thing the department wanted was curious people tromping out to the site where Hoffman had disposed of his victims’ bodies.

  Even after the recovery of the bodies, some people were skeptical that Matthew Hoffman had committed the crimes by himself. A man named Joe S contacted Detective Sergeant Roger Brown and said that he’d worked with Hoffman a month previously. Joe discounted other descriptions of Hoffman as a total loner and related, “Matt and [a] friend drove to Charles Mill to get paid for a job. They were paid by check. The store cashed their checks for them. I am just curious as to who his friend was. He was a big husky guy. They were driving a Chevy S-10, and the bed was wooden, I believe.” Joe also said he recalled the husky guy talking about having been in Colorado.

  Joe went on to say that he didn’t think Hoffman seemed very strong; according to him, Hoffman looked more like a junkie. Joe was certain that the husky man had helped Hoffman in all the crimes.

  Most other opinions, however, especially in law enforcement, agreed that Matthew Hoffman had been the sole killer of Tina, Kody and Stephanie. They knew he had a penchant for breaking into people’s residences, as his Colorado crime had shown.

  And they also knew that Hoffman had plenty of upper-body strength and that he worked out. There was even an unexpected connection between Hoffman and Stephanie Sprang in that regard: police learned from Steve Mullins, owner of Body Basics gym in Mount Vernon, that Matthew Hoffman had been a member there and Stephanie Sprang had been on the cleaning crew. Mullins noted that Hoffman would generally come in shortly before closing time, and Stephanie and the cleaning crew would come in after hours when the gym was already closed. Mullins didn’t know whether the two had ever crossed paths, but the information renewed speculation that Matthew Hoffman might have met, or at least seen, Stephanie before the crimes were committed on November 10.

  TWENTY-SEVEN

  Matt Hoffman’s Statement

  The formal written confession by Matthew Hoffman came on Saturday, November 20, 2010. Detective David Light said, “Hoffman’s attorneys typed his confession and he signed it as well as making several corrections.” Matthew Hoffman had to write a statement about what he had done in connection with Tina, Sarah, Kody and Stephanie. When it was finished, the authorities believed it was a combination of the truth, half truths and downright lies.

  Hoffman began by saying that he had parked his car in Howard (Apple Valley) and walked to the area of Tina’s residence. He then went into a patch of woods across the street shortly after midnight on November 10. He had a sleeping bag with him and slept in it during the nighttime hours.

  Hoffman related that there were two vehicles parked near the house, and he said he woke up when one of them, the gray car (probably Greg Borders’s), left during the early morning hours. Hoffman said that he then went back to sleep until around nine in the morning. He added that he stayed in the woods until the woman of the residence left in the pickup truck.

  Since there were no more vehicles at the house, Hoffman walked across the street and tried entering the front door, but it was locked. He then went to the garage door and found it was not closed all the way. He slid under the door and entered the garage, then kicked in the door from the garage to the interior of the house. By that time it was around 10:30 AM as far as he could tell. The investigators believed this was probably true, since Tina Herrmann was known to be out of the house at that point.

  Hoffman’s statement continued, “I looked around the house to make sure that no one else was there. Even if I did not take anything, there was a certain amount of excitement in being in someone else’s home without them being there.”

  Hoffman wrote that he was looking for anything of value that he could easily carry out of the house, items like jewelry and money. He searched around the house for about an hour and stated that he didn’t “find anything of real value.”

  Hoffman said he was getting ready to leave when he heard a vehicle pull up in the driveway. If this is correct, he stayed in the house almost two hours before anyone came home, which is unusual in a burglary. Hoffman said he was in a back bedroom and couldn’t exit the house without breaking a window and jumping out. He added, “I brought my knife for a certain amount of intimidation in case I ran into someone and needed to make an escape.”

  When Tina Herrmann made her way to the back bedroom, Hoffman confronted her and made her lie down on the bed, facedown. He said he had a blackjack and was going to try and knock her out. He hit her in the back of the head a couple of times, but it did not knock her out; he claimed that then he started panicking and before he knew it, the woman’s friend came into the bedroom. This second woman yelled at him and his sense of panic increased.

  Hoffman grabbed his knife, which he said he’d put down on the nightstand until that moment, and stabbed the woman on the bed (Tina) through her back twice. Then he chased down the other woman (Stephanie Sprang), who had run into Sarah’s room, and stabbed her a couple of times in the chest. Hoffman believed this was a girl’s bedroom, based on the room’s contents. In many ways, Hoffman’s claim that Stephanie ran to Sarah’s bedroom didn’t make sense, since Stephanie knew that house, and knew that Sarah’s bedroom would be a trap with no exit. It’s quite possible he was lying about this, and had actually dragged Stephanie into that bedroom to kill her. The only reason she may have run into Sarah’s bedroom was that she panicked and fled to that area of the house.

  Hoffman said he made sure the woman who had yelled at him was dead, and then returned to the bedroom where the first woman was still lying facedown. He stabbed her again and again until he was sure she was dead as well.

  Hoffman claimed that by then, he was in a total state of shock. He wandered around the house “slowly coming to a realization of what I had done and how bad it was.” There was a dog in the house that would not stop barking, so he killed it too. Eventually, Hoffman said, he decided to dispose of the bodies and burn the house down.

  At first he considered loading the women’s bodies into the Jeep parked in the garage and driving them to a Foundation Park pond. He said he planned to drive the Jeep into the pond and then swim away as the vehicle sank. But then, he wrote, he realized that the water would be very cold and he might not be able to make it to shore. Hoffman continued, “I decided to process the bodies and dispose of them inside of a tree that I knew was hollow.” By “process the bodies,” he meant dismember them into small sizes that he could put into trash bags.

  Hoffman claimed that he dragged the women’s bodies into the bathroom, where he began “processing” them. He said he used garb
age bags he found in the house and placed the body parts inside of them. Once he had finished cutting up the bodies, he moved the Jeep into the garage from the driveway where it had been parked, to load up the body bags. From the time he killed Tina and Stephanie until the kids got home from school, was at least an hour and a half. He still had a couple of bags left to load when he heard children come into the house. He knew there was a small amount of blood on the floor at the front door due to his having placed a bag there before he decided how best to load all the bags into the Jeep.

  Hoffman said he was in the hallway when the children first came into the house, and quickly decided he had to do something. He ran to the front door, and the girl slipped past him and ran into a bedroom. Hoffman related, “I immediately stabbed the boy in the chest a couple of times.” That would indicate that Kody hadn’t turned around toward the door before he was killed. Sarah thought that he had turned and was making his way toward the door. Evidence, seemed to prove that Sarah was correct. The fatal stab wound to Kody was in the back of his head and there was another stab wound to his back.

  Hoffman then ran to the bedroom where the girl had gone to make sure she wasn’t calling for help and added, “I saw the girl was not on the phone and I could not bring myself to kill her.” This was in direct contradiction to Sarah, who said that she was on the phone but he grabbed her before she could use it.

  Hoffman wrote that the girl said she thought he was going to kill her, but he told her he wouldn’t and “everything was fine.” She was suspicious about blood in her bedroom, but Hoffman had already dumped motor oil on those blood spots to try and change their appearance. Or that was at least his version now. He told her they were not blood spots but rather something else. Sarah did not believe him about the blood. Then he said he lied and told her that he had “tasered” her brother, who was still alive. Sarah did not believe him about this, and in fact, he may have not mentioned this tasering at all to her during the actual events of November 10th. More likely he was just inserting this now, since Sarah did not mention the taser comment at all.