GUILTY KY - Matthew Smith, 28, body found burned, Laurel County, Jan 2004

[georgiagirl]

WLEX-TV


Lily, KY (AP) - Human bone fragments found in a rusted metal barrel that had been submerged in a southeastern Kentucky pond were those of an adult male, Laurel County Coroner Doug Bowling said Wednesday.
The barrel was found by a man and his daughter last week. The bones had been in the barrel at least two years, Bowling said. The barrel also contained bullets and had several bullet holes in it, Bowling said.
The Laurel County sheriff's department received a tip several months ago about a body being located in the area near where the barrel was found. The area could not be thoroughly searched until recently when a dam that had turned the area into a large pond was released.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19461553/

 

[southerncat]

There has been a person charged in this case, as of yesterday 07/10/2007 but authorities say they still do not know the identity of the victim.

http://www.wkyt.com/home/headlines/8415122.html

 

[LisainWV]

Do we have any info on these remains?

Timeline, gender, any clues??

 

[chicoliving]

Do we have any info on these remains?

Timeline, gender, any clues??

Not really...wonder how long he's been in prison?

Laurel County Sheriff Fred Yaren says that 26 year old Tony Clayton Hodge has been charged with murder.

According to the Laurel County Sheriff Department, Hodge is currently serving time in the Madison County Detention Center, on previous murder charges.

At this time, the victim remains unidentified.
http://www.wkyt.com/home/headlines/8415122.html

 

[chicoliving]

Police say the burned truck found with the remains belongs to Hodge. They say they began investigating Hodge because a man convicted of a murder which took place at Levi Jackson State Park in 2004 has always claimed Hodge was the killer.

http://www.wkyt.com/wymtnews/headlines/8421532.html

Authorities in Southeast Kentucky believe they may have solved three murders with one arrest.

The Madison County Detention Center is holding 26-year-old Tony Clayton Hodge of London, Kentucky, for the deaths of two people in a home invasion robbery in May, 2006.

http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=47022

 

[Cubby]

PTV article. The remains were identified as Matthew R. Smith, 28.

http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we...page=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM

 

[OkieGranny]

From 2008:

http://www.wkyt.com/home/headlines/14488622.html

A Laurel County judge sentences a man to 40 years in prison for killing a man, then burning his body in a barrel.

The sentence is part of a plea deal Tony Hodge agreed to last month...

Hodge is already serving a life sentence for killing a Madison County woman in 2006.

 

[Tulessa]

Wow! Thanks for the updates guys!