COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – One of four men found slain at their homes in a small Ohio city had sought help two days earlier for the man now charged in the killings, according to police records obtained by The Associated Press.
Billy Jack Chatman told Bucyrus police two days before he was found dead that he had called an ambulance for Donald Hoffman against Hoffman’s wishes after the man collapsed on his floor, according to documents obtained through a public records request.
The records show Hoffman, 41, had entered Chatman’s house Aug. 30 bloody and reeking of alcohol, the apparent victim of an assault.
After Hoffman fell down, Chatman “thought he may need an ambulance so he called,” the report said.
The bodies of Chatman, 55, and another man were found Sept. 1. Two other bodies were found the next day.