‘No trauma’: Bodies of Ohio woman, son found inside home after 18 months

ROSE TOWNSHIP, Ohio — The bodies of an eastern Ohio woman and her adult son were found in their home last month, nearly 18 months after they died, authorities said last week.

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According to Carroll County Sheriff Calvin Graham, the bodies of Shelvagean Rhoden, 79, and Jimmie Rhoden, 59, were discovered on Dec. 26 in Rose Township by a young male, possibly a teenager, The Repository newspaper of Canton reported.

Their remains were taken to the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office, according to the newspaper. Their identities were confirmed by X-rays and medical records.

“Nothing suspicious, no trauma to the bodies,” Graham told The Repository. “Both had medical problems.”

Graham said certain clues led investigators to create a timeline of when the Rhodens died, WOIO-TV reported.

“What was left in the refrigerator, we know the power was turned off Aug. 24 by Carroll Electric for no payment and there was mail in the house that indicated it was somewhere around mid-June,” Graham said, according to the television station.

The sheriff’s office also conducted a welfare check that was requested by Adult Protective Services in September 2021, but Graham said that the deputy that went to the residence got no response and had no indication that anything might have been wrong.

Through a public records request, WOIO discovered that an ambulance was called to the home on June 7, 2021.

Jimmie Rhoden is listed in Carroll County real estate records as the owner of the property, The Repository reported.

“Right now the (real estate) taxes are current,” Carroll County Treasurer Jeff Yeager told the newspaper. “It looks like it is a tax service company that has been keeping those taxes up to date. I can’t do anything with it because it is not delinquent. I can’t foreclose until they are delinquent.”

No relatives have claimed the remains, according to The Repository. The pair will likely be buried in a Rose Township cemetery.

“The township is responsible to pay for the burial,” Graham told the newspaper.

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