Search For Shooter, Answers In Murder of Rhoden Family
WHITFIELD: Oh welcome back. A manhunt is on this hour in Ohio, following the chilling, execution-style murder of a family. Police there are looking for the shooter, or shooters, who gunned down eight family members in Piketon, as they slept. That small town is about 95 miles East of Cincinnati. CNN's Nick Valencia has the latest on the investigation.</s>NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The search is on for the killer or killers of eight family members in Southern Ohio. Police say most were shot execution style, while they slept.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MAN: This is a horrible tragedy that has occurred here, in Pike County. Each one of the victims appears to have been executed. Each one of the victims appears to be shot in the head.</s>VALENCIA (voice-over): The seven adults, and a 16-year old boy, found dead at four crime scenes. All have been identified as members of the Rhoden family. Surviving relatives are being warned. Police suspect the victims had been targeted. But there's no apparent motive.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Right now we have no one in custody. I want to urge everyone to be under the understanding that there is a strong possibility that any individuals involved with this are armed and extremely dangerous.</s>VALENCIA (voice-over): Police say none of the victims appear to have committed suicide. The dead include a mother, killed in bed with her 4-day old child beside her. That child, along with a six-month old, and a three-year old, survived the massacre.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MAN: We talked to a member of the Rhoden family, and their friends actually. They were gathered at a -- in a local church, about 100 people that we met with. And we expressed directly to them, our deepest sympathy for the family. And as you can imagine, this is a very, very difficult time.</s>VALENCIA (voice-over): The Rhoden family is well-known in the tight- knit community. About 90 miles East of Cincinnati. Toby Smalley (ph) says he knew one of the victims. TOBY SMALLEY (ph),</s>FAMILY FRIEND: This is a tragedy that we've never had to go through. We've lost people through car wrecks, and cancer, and sudden death for no reason, hunting accidents. But never like this.</s>VALENCIA: And I just spoke exclusively on-camera with the pastor of the Rhoden family, who tells me that there are about 100 family and friends who've gathered at his church last night, to try to find answers, try to find comfort, any sort of consolation. But it's those answers that are really in short supply. The pastor speculated that whoever did this, whoever is responsible for this ruthless and unimaginable tragedy, that they may have been stalking the family. He says that one of the victims, Dana Rhoden, left her Hillcrest nursing home job at about 11:00 p.m., last night. And it was about 7:30, 8:00 in the morning when police initially got the phone call about a mass shooting here, in this community of about 2,000 people. That pastor went on to say that there is a drug problem in the area. He wouldn't go on to commit to saying that any of those victims had drug problems. But certainly, that is the rumor in this community right now. So far, officially, there is no motive. But we anticipate there could be a press conference later this afternoon, perhaps we'll get more answers there. As for that on-camera interview with the pastor, we'll have more from him at 3:00 p.m., Eastern, on CNN Newsroom. Fredricka?</s>WHITFIELD: All right, we look forward to that. Thank you so much, Nick Valencia, appreciate it. All right, still ahead,</s>UNIDENTIFIED MAN: I needed to switch parties. I'm tired of being blamed for all of the things for the people that don't want to get off their butt and get a job.</s>UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Donald Trump has been in real estate for so many years. And I'm quite sure he is still in real estate.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MAN: He's disrupted the entire system.</s>WHITFIELD: CNN's Michael Smerconish talking very frankly to some of the 90,000 Pennsylvania voters who switched their registration to the GOP for the primary. Many hoping to either help or stop Donald Trump.