Ohio Mom and Son Found Dead in Their Home by a Neighbor More Than a Year and a Half After They Died
The bodies of a 79-year-old woman and her 59-year-old son were found in their Ohio home last month — and police say the discovery was made a year and a half after they died.
Carroll County Sheriff officials said the bodies of Shelvagean Rhoden and her son, Jimmie Rhoden, were found by a teenage boy who was hunting near their remote home in Rose Township on Dec. 26, according to WOIO.
"A neighbor who went up, looked into the window thinking no one was there and seeing the deceased person inside one of the bedrooms," Carroll County Sheriff Calvin Graham said.
The Carroll Country Sheriff's Office did not immediately respond when reached by PEOPLE.
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Authorities believe they may have died a year and a half ago, in June 2021, Per The Repository.
Graham said Adult Protective Services asked the department to perform a welfare check in September 2021, and the family's power had been turned off in August after their electricity bill went unpaid.
"What was left in the refrigerator, we know the power was turned off August 24 by Carroll Electric for no payment, and there was mail in the house that indicated it was somewhere around mid-June," Graham said of how they estimated when both died.
During the September welfare check, Graham said the responding sheriff did not see signs of amiss.
"When the deputy went to the home, he got no response and had no indication that anything was wrong," Graham told WOIO.
There did not appear to be signs of foul play or forced entry, investigators said, per the outlet.
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Graham said Rose Township will choose the pair's burial arrangements since they were unable to locate their next of kin. An autopsy will also be performed.
"Right now, we're just waiting on the official autopsy reports," he told WOIO, "and we'll proceed from there or close the case."
