The Digital Trail

It's important to note that Billy Wagner, George Wagner's father, whose trial is upcoming, has pled not guilty to all charges. We've so far heard rhems of testimony from different ballistics experts, from the coroner who did the autopsies on the Rodent family, from the victims family members. Last episode we heard from Billy Wagner, and now we hear more from the rest of the Wagners. But the day begins with the hearing before Judge during regarding the use of technology and media

in the trial. Here's James Pilcher, longtime investigative reporter in Cincinnati now with Local twelve. This was a big day for the media covering the trial because the day before, the appeals court ruled that whatever shown in court, we can show either through still photographs, streaming video, whatever, because the judge had previously said he tried to put a ban on anything involving blood, involving miners, or involving bodies, and that's against the rules of jurisprudence in Ohio. Anything

that's shown in court can be shown publicly. Now it's up to us to self censor. This morning's hearing is over how the appellate Court's ruling will affect the photos and videos that are presented in the trial moving forward. It harkens back to the beginning of the trial, when so much was about what would and would not be

allowed to be released by the media. Defense attorney John Parker argues that jurors could go online and see images that were not previously introduced as evidence, and that that could taint the view of the defendant, George Wagner. The fourth judge, Daring asked the prosecution about the possibility of the jury viewing sensitive material, in particular material that is not being admitted into evidence. Assuming the jurors are following

the cors order, there's absolutely no reason to it. They're or not, and they're not going to be looking at any type of media or being so anything out of the media anyway. Yeah, that would be our position, or it's not very good, it doesn't be fished. In the end, Judge Daring sides with the news media and the prosecution.

That morning, the judge has a hearing and says, hey, we've got to abide by this and from now on you go ahead and use the screens, but no that it's going to be it can be shown, and that the prosecution at that point had been going to the photographers and saying, hey, this is gonna have blood and it don't show it. Well, it was allowing the prosecutors to self censor, our censor what was going to be shown on what wasn't, and that's really not what the

court is supposed to happen. So, yeah, that was a big day with the media policy clarified. The trial resumes. Special Prosecutor Angie Kinnepa and her team called Ohio BCI intelligence supervisor Dana Forney to the stand. Forney was a criminal intelligence analyst at the time of the murders in twenty six team as investigators were looking into the Wagner's agent,

Forney analyzed their cell phone data. Forny says she first looked at Billy Wagner cell records in the months and days leading up to the murders on April twenty first and twenty second, twenty sixteen. Forney has been working in the criminal intelligence unit for ten years. She wears a purple shirt with a black blazer and is calm and confident on the stand. Forney lays out why she was looking into the phone records of Billy Wagner, father, the

defendant and also accused murderer. Once Billy was interviewed by the investigative team, they requested the records to either corroborate or refute any statements that he made about his locations who he was calling. So the investigative team had asked me to just take a look at the records and create a map of where Billy was on the day of the twenty first and the twenty second. Okay, and so did you do that? Yes? Angie Kneppa brings the

map on the screen for the courtroom to see. It shows various cell towers and their relation to the three crime scenes, as well as the Wagner residences. Agent Forney also had access to the call log so she could see who Billy Wagner was calling and who was calling Billy. On April twenty first, the day of the murders, there were several calls from Billy Wagner's son, George. The fourth though stopped at around five forty four pm. It was at five fifty five pm when Billy made his last

phone call of the day. The last outgoing call from this device that night of April twenty first was to Christopher Roden Senior. Billy Wagner's last call of the night was to Christopher Roden Senior. Chris Roden tried to call Billy back five separate times up until ten fifteen pm. Each time it went to voicemail. Previous testimony stated that

Chris Rodin was likely murdered soon after eleven pm. Can you tell us did that device of Billy Wagner's ever make any attacks to contact Chris Senior's phone after receiving those series of calls the night before that were routed to voicemail. No even though he checked his voicemail that following morning. Yes, did you see any evidence whatsoever that he ever called or attempted to call Chris Rodan Senior after that last call to him shortly before six pm

on April twenty first of twenty sixteen. There were no outcoing calls from Billy's phone to Chris Rodan Senior. So the other thing that they found in those records, of course, was that he never called Chris Senior, like he told BCI agents after Chris died. You know, he said he destroyed his phones and he got a new number because he kept getting upset at himself because he kept calling Chris Senior's phone by accident, because he was his best friend. Well,

they proved that never happened. Using triangulation of the cell towers and the geolocation of Billy's cell phone. Agent four was also able to narrow down Wagner's location when he used his phone when I conducted the analysis first of just his common towers. These were the most common towers in Billy's records, the two that serviced the area of the Flying W and the one that services the area of Peterson Road. The Flying W was where Billy Wagner's

parents lived. Billy spent most nights there. The Peterson Road address was where Angela, Jake and George Wagner lived. Prosecutor Knappa asked about the location of Billy's cell phone the day of the murders and the day after. She also asked if there was a change in Billy's habits on those days. So significant to you would be if the last outgoing or incoming contact or communication was at a particular location at that night and then also in that

same location in the morning. Correct, we dedicate to you at the habit of spending the night or whatever. Yes, Kneppa pulls up on the big screen a calendar of Billy's cell phone locations during the month of April. This is April twenty sixteen's calendar of Billy's last serving cell site and first serving cell site. Okay, And specifically, you have the last cell site, which is the services the Peterson Road address. Correct, Yes, at eleven o four pm.

And then the first phone utilization the following morning also still located at Peterson Road. Correct, And why was that significant? I guess that on April twenty first the device was at Peterson Road when typically it would be in the flyin w. There were just comments made to the investigative team about the family was all together that night and we didn't know if that was a common for them to all be together at Peterson Road and then again through kind of the end of April. Do you see

that same pattern continuing as far as the Peterson Road address. Yes, so then from that point forward you see a shift in the device's behavior that now the typical last serving cellsite and first serving cellsite the next morning are in

the Peterson Road area. And the other thing they were able to show is that leading up to the murders that Billy up until then, his phone at night when he would go to bed was at the Flying w After the murders, for at least a month and a half, except for the times they went to Alaska, it was at Peterson Road. So that was a major alteration in

his behavior. On the day after the murders. Here's Stephanie and Jeff And by the way, this is the very very first time I've personally ever heard that Billy Wagner accused father that he wasn't sleeping home. And while this evidence doesn't necessarily tie George Wagner directly to the murders. It does support the prosecution's argument that the Wagners were in contact and were physically together the night of the murders.

It's fascinating now that we can better understand the comings and goings of everyone based on their cell phones, and it's always interesting to see behind the curtain a little bit about an investigation, cell towers, information regarding where their cell phones were. It kind of becomes this map, and in many cases that's extremely meaningful. I will say, in this case, again we're not seeing too too much yet about George, but it is certainly interesting to see where

everybody else was and who they had been calling. In those final days, people were frustrated with law enforcements, timeline of how long it took to make arrests, or how the public felt like they didn't know what was going on. But I think this kind of police work just proves that, like you said, behind the curtain, there was a lot of investigative work happening that really helps not just getting arrest,

but hopefully commiction. What's your inclination? Does that mean that Billy Wagner, Accu's father was calling victim father Chris rod In to see if he was home at that hour, and doing sort of a scout to see if typically he's home between those certain hours. I think it probably points to Billy Wagner knowing that every cell phone call is tracked or could be tracked, and he is planting some seed or trying to lay some sort of what

will eventually be his defense. Good point. It should also be important to note staff that while the cell phone data helps give an idea of Billy Wagner's location and habits before and after the murders, it doesn't actually detail what was said during these phone calls. More importantly, it

doesn't specify how the Wagner's allegedly coordinated the killings. All of that is about to change with the next witness called by the prosecution, Julia Evslidge, a BCI agent who analyzed the search history, images and text messages on Angelo Wagner's phone. BCI's Julia Everslage says Angelo Wager's cell phone activity showed several disturbing entries. Here's forensic medical examiner Joseph

Scott Morgan. Digital data plays such a huge role in all of these cases, you begin to see this little what I refer to as electron bread crumbs as to their activity. Agent Everslage wears a purple blazer and white shirt. She has dirty blonde hair that falls to her shoulders. On the stand she speaks in a very matter of

fact manner about the Google searches of Angelo Wagner. So the bottom line here is a Google search for Alaska houses for sale and what I believed to be in Seward, which is a city or a town in Alaska, a visit of a website Seward real Estate, Inc. And a second visit of that. Just a minute later, Prosecutor Kaneppa and Agent Eversledge walk through the various searches. There are many about houses for sale in Alaska, living in Alaska, jobs in Alaska, both before and after the murders. Here again,

Joseph Scott Morgan. You know, we all go into a trial with a presumption of innocence in our system. However, when the prosecution is presenting this case to the jury, you have to draw upon the common sense of the jury and say it isn't it interesting you know that this individual might be searching out things like you know, the nature of what it's like to live in Alaska, or you know, are are there jobs available, for instance in Alaska. But Angelo Adner wasn't only googling about Alaska.

The Google search is symptoms of sexual Penetration in a Toddler and that took place on January eighteen, twenty sixteen. And then the final lineup of the top is Trauma Responses in Children, a website that was visited here again James Pilcher. The other thing that came up from Angela's phone is that she had been searching for several months previously on signs of sexual abuse and a toddler. We know that they will later accuse the Rodents of or

somebody in the Rodent family of abusing Jake's daughter. But one key thing that on Angela's phone which kind of got me to thinking about this paranoia about sexual abuse and rape. She looked up rape culture in Alaska. Now, if you're moving to a place, is that one thing you would look up? Is that something you would google? Is there rape culture up there? So obviously it's front of mine in this family for her. We're going to

take a break. We'll be back in a moment. The prosecution and agent of a Sledge turned to Angela Wagner's searches in March, just one month before the murders. There are first searches on Facebook for Hannah may rodin photos, an attempt to look at the friends of Hannah Roden's on her Facebook, and then another search on the same friends list of Hannah Roden. On March thirteenth, twenty sixteen, Agent of A Sledge reads Angela's search history just days

after the murders. These were searches pertaining to the homicides themselves. On April twenty seventh, there was a Facebook search Roden family massacre. They were reading of comments from the search as well as Roden Family shootings, and then reading of two articles pertaining to the homicides from the Inquirer. When you've got a person that is essentially the matriarch of the family and who many people have pointed to is

kind of the brains behind the operation. And when you begin to see the searches that Angela was engaged in, when you marry that up with the physical evidence that you have and you see how of that plays out, then I think by extension, you begin to comparely thinks you know well, you can searching thing you want to on your phone. It doesn't necessarily mean that you're guilty. The defense points out that Angela's search history doesn't prove

that she acted on the information. However, the text between Angela and her husband Billy Wagner Do Shine a Lad in their dynamic Evislige begins to read text messages aloud that were sent between Angela and Billy Wagner. Angela, I still love you, but I would like to spend some time with you, just you, not all of all our problems. Billy. That's not going to happen, and it's only going to get worse. Shit just starting, Angela, What are you talking about.

I'm trying to understand, Billy. I am preparing my head for disaster, Angela, for what your dad or Jake? Billy? Just everything has turned to shit all Angela. Yes, I agree with you. Can I help you in any way? Billy? Bullet to the head would fix me right up. She reads a text exchange four months before the murders, this one about Hannah Rodin Angela. All hell is happening here with Hannah and Angela. She is trying to keep Jake from getting her tomorrow. Billy did you get her yet? Billy,

you can run away with me, Angela. I promise, if it weren't for me and I would be gone. Billy. Anytime you want, Billy, you just say the word and me, you and babies will be off on the big adventure. Billy, just give me a sign and I will come running. James Pilcher there were several between Billy and Angela that showed very, very tumultuous nature of the relationship. You know. Billy even said, I wish I could take you away. She said, yeah, if it weren't for the kids and

the grandkids, I would go with you. But I'm with them. More messages about Billy and Angela Wagner running away together, sent three months before the murders. Billy, I am moving on. You are more than welcome to come bring babies and come on. Angela. Well, they are not our babies. And I would never do that to George and Jake. I would have killed someone if they would have even mentioned going away with my babies. And if you really missed me, you would do anything or go through anything for me.

Here's Jeff and Joseph Scott Morgan. Again. It's interesting because I don't think any of her texts our Google searches are totally point to George's guilt, certainly, but they do paint a picture of maybe the dynamics of the family. The way I've kind of come to view this case and in context to everything, is that Angela is essentially

the hub of the wagon. Will Okay, and everybody else that is involved in this, whether it was Jake or Billy or George who's currently on trial, their extensions, they're like spoke and all of this. She's the hub that everything else radiates out from, And when you begin to take all of that into consideration, it does paint this picture of the world that these people existed in. They

live in this world that's dominated by Angela. Prosecutor Kneppa and agent Everslage walk through text messages set nearly two months before the murders. Billy, it's a fine mess Angela. Well, maybe it is worth you helping me work it out. As the date of the massacre draws near, a particularly disturbing message, Billy, I got a plan If you just take one damn minute and listen, Angela. Okay, tell me, Billy when I see you. This is the last time.

I am going to try. If the three of you don't take time to listen to me, then oh well, Angela, okay, Stephanie and je At that time, remember Billy Wagner's father was dying. There was a husty to dispute heating up between the Wagoners and the Rodents. So when he's talking about things being, you know, really bad, perhaps that's what he was talking about, not necessarily anything to do with murder.

Knowing what we know now, you can put a lens on anything the Wagners did, whether it's something they google, something they said to each other, something they said in writing, where they went, what they did, all of those things can be scrutinized in a way that they couldn't before. Agent Evislage then turns to text messages sent between Jake and Angela. These were sent just one month before the murders. It was a conversation of interest because it appeared to

have been discussing parts that were purchased. Jake okay, also at okay, I'd done paid for it all, but I do not need two three quarter inch stuff now, So see if you can, if you can return it, Angela, I will take care of it. Jake, Okay, it's a die and two fittings that I do not need. Pick up the other die and bit still need them? Angela, okay, we'll do. Did you pay cash or put them on

your card? Jake cash? Angela okay. And when you say that was of interest because it related to items that have been purchased, what are you talking about, specifically items that we believe we're used to build suppressors. There's information openly available on the internet about parts required or that can be used to make suppressors. Tap and dies, for instance, are parts that can be used, Drill bits that are long can be used, and those are just components that

are used to build suppressors. When it comes to the testimony of Julia Edislage, she's kind of had access to the beating heart of information. She has a unique insight into this world that the Wagoners inhabited, because you begin to think about, well, is it a matter of them being able to talk about these things open freely or are they going to have to create coded language in

order to do this? In order to get messages through to one another, Evslas reads another text message with what appears to be coded language George Wagner continues to stare at his feed. Jake ps, look in the cabinet at the bottom of stairs, not finished yet and need one more. Angela, Are there pink bunnies there? Jake? One is Angela? What about sprinkles? Jake ain't got them yet. They are coming

in mail and at Okay. Next Friday, Prosecutor Knappa asked the agents why she thought the words quote sprinkles and quote pink bunnies were quoted language. Well, first, there was a mention of and okay, which in the prior messages there were parts to be picked up or exchanged at Okay,

which I interpreted to be okay. Auto parts were known purchases that we identified later from various autoparts stores, and as well as the conversation the pink bunnies, that was right on the heels of the discussion about the various parts regards what you testified too could be used to make silencers correct, Yes, okay. If you have an awareness where you feel though you're gonna have to speak in coded language, why in the world would you even offer

up any conversation at all. As it turned out, you know, they were able to pick up the multiplicity communications that were going on, and you began to see this a little trail of electronic breadcrumbs that have been created. Here again, Stephanie and Jeff, there's a lot made of Billy and Angela Wagner using code words when they're talking about sprinkles

and pink bunnies. And I don't know, that might be a little bit of a leap, if you know, we're all working on the assumption that these are code words that could very well be but those code words could be for anything, you know, as mentioned, it could be for autoparts, it could be for drugs. It could also be for ingredients to make a cake. Yeah, Steph, I mean, this is very circumstantial evidence, if it's even considered evidence at all, and it certainly doesn't point to George Wagner

being guilty of murder. Local news jumps on this finding of quoted language text messages between Angela and Jake, which include pink bunnies and sprinkles nothing to do with cartoons or ice cream. The prosecution says they are code words for firearm accessories that Jake ordered. Now, today's testimony also took jurors to Montana's border with Canada. That's where agents intercepted the Wagners, who were driving back to the US from Alaska more than a year before they ended up

being arrested. Next, the prosecution calls up Agent Ryan Shy. He wears a gray suit with a purple shirt and tie and was the lead investigator in the Rodent family murders. The prosecution begins by laying out the evidence collected thus far in the investigation. So at this point, now you have collected ballistic evidence that we heard Matt White also talk about that matched the shell cascenes or cartridge casings

that were fired at both scenes two and three. And we have the shoeprint evidence that has now been linked to the Wagner's via the Walmart receive in the image of Angela Wagner. We had those forged custody documents, et cetera. So various pieces of evidence that you have collected. Can you tell us then, did this signify a change or a shift in the investigation? Yes, it did. Scheider's calm demeanor reflects his years of experience with the Ohio Bureau

of Criminal Investigation. On the stand, he has serious and matter of fact. So at this point they're suspects. The Wagners now have become suspects and these crimes. But this point is when you first had both ballistic and other physical evidence tying into the correct Before it was suspicion

and things weren't adding up. Now we have evidence, We have physical evidence that says that somebody at that residence at two sixty Peterson Road, which the only people that lived there were George Wagner, Jake Wagner, and Angela Wagner, possessed the firearm that killed five people on Union Hill Road. Here again investigative reporter James and Pilcher, that flicked a switch from them being people of interest to being suspects. That was a pretty teammate, but with the Wagners in

their sites, investigators had a problem. When you have an investigation with multiple suspects, one of the things you want to do is get a statement from each one of those. Well, the best way to do that is to how we're separated, like, you don't want them together when you talk to them

because they feed off of each other. So one of the things we wanted to do is figure out how can we get a statement from all four Wagoners at the same time where they're away from each other, and can you tell us what plan did you come up with in order to effectuate that. Our plan was to intercept them at the border of Canada and the United

States when they returned back from Alaska. Scheiderer testified that they made preparations with their sister agency in North Dakota to intercept and interview the Wagners at that entry point. Agents also wanted to listen to the conversations the Wagoners were having on their phones and wanted to plant a listening device in the Wagner's vehicle. But to do this, they needed a special warrant, the intercept warrant, so that

you can receive the intercept warrant through Ohio. So the warrant is good for the county in which the crimes are committed. The investigators needed intercept warrants for both Ohio and North Dakota since that is where they would be installing the listening devices. Here again, Jeff and Joseph Scott Morgan,

can you explain what an intercept warrant is? First off, in order to warrant, you have to be able to go to a judge and have them sign off on this because you know, we have certain protections, constitutional protections that extend out to warrants that involve listening devices. So you have to state specifically what you're going to be listening to, and just think of it very simply like this. It's intercepted communications between parties of interests that are involved

in a case. It's say, for instance, your suspect and they've gotten an intercept warrant for your phone. Well, if you're talking to another individuals, that might be a principle in the case that gathering of information might be permissible. You can't just collect everything randomly. There has to be a reason why this data is collected and to make it viable for court. We're going to take a break. We'll be back in a moment with the intercept warrants

for North Dakota and Ohio in place. Agents then traveled to North Dakota a boarding Air Force plane their plan to intercept the Wagners on May twentieth, twenty seventeen. What happened when you arrived in North Dakota. We got off the plane and then we were alerted by Customs and Border Patrol HSI that we were in the wrong state. What do you mean by that? As the Wagners had exited Alaska to go into Canada, they had to declare their boordamentry once they were trying to get back into

the United States. At the point they declared they were coming through sweet Grass, Montana. The agents then boarded another plane and headed to Montana. So now your timeline is shortened a little bit, and you are now in a state that you did not make the corporations with correct. Correct, and it's also on a weekend. Correct, Okay, So tell me what you did. We scrambled, so kind of panicked a little bit. Law enforcements scrambled to redo the applications

for the intercept warrants this time in Montana. We spent most of the night obtaining those warrants because we had to write them. They had not been written yet. So sometime around five am Sunday morning, Montana time, we were alerted that the wagoners were making better time than expected and that they would be arriving at sweet Grass sooner than we thought. So we had to rush up to the border early that morning and await their arrivals. Here again,

James Pilcher, the Wagoners went to Alaska one way. They crossed in North Dakota, so the investigators assumed they would come back the same way. Well they didn't. They indicated they were going to come back through Montana. So here they had flown on an National Air Guard cargo plane with all of their stuff, had everything set up at the North Dakota border to intercept them, and then they found that well they're going to be cross again Montana.

Twenty four hours that to hop the plane, get on the phone with the Montana Attorney General's office, make sure they had the permission for the warrants that they needed. So they worked around the clock, NonStop, when no sleep, and then stop them at the Montana border in this tiny, little US Border Patrol facility that didn't have really the capability to interview for people separately, but that's what they did. At this point, I'm getting the impression that they're not

just putting George Wagner on trial. They are showing the entire Pike Counted community, the entire state, at the entire country, what they went through to get here. They left no stone unturned, even if they admit during some of this they made mistakes. Stephanie and Jeff I thought It was so interesting to hear the play by play of how authorities had to switch things up from North Dakota to the Montana border, and you know, you can kind of picture this and see how this is unfolding and how

hectic it must have really been. And again, they've been tracking them for a long time. So the idea that they could have missed them and were able to adjust and switch their plan up pretty quickly, I thought was powering. I was. I was frankly on the edge of my seat. And it goes back to behind the scenes, law enforcement is working in ways that the public is not aware of. They were tracking this family and they were moving in real time as the Wagoners were moving to ultimately get

the goods. With the Montana intercept Warrens in hand, the agents intercepted the Wagoners at the border in Montana and were they each placed in a separate room and interview attempts made with each of them. Yes, the gig was up. They knew we were looking at them. More on that next time. For Warre information on the case and relevant photos, follow us on Instagram at Katie Underscore Studios. The Pike and Maskers produced by Stephanie Lidecker, Jeff Shane, Chris Cacaro,

Andrew Arnow, Gabriel Castillo and me Courtney Armstrong. Editing and sound designed by Jeff Tis, Music by Jared Aston. The piked in Masacre is a production of iHeartRadio and Kati Studios. For more podcasts from I heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.