Felix Jimenez, who worked as a DEA agent for more than 30 years, said the Piketon, Ohio, killings on April 22 are a message from Mexican drug cartels.
“That style of murders we are seeing only in Mexico between the cartels,” Jimenez said during a video interview with Univision.
The former DEA agent said that since the legalization of marijuana in various states, demand has risen on par with the black market. He believes the family was competing with cartels.
The execution-style shootings left seven adults and a 16-year-old dead, all of the Rhoden family; Christopher Jr. and Christopher Sr., Hannah-Gilley, Clarence, Dana, Gary, Hanna, and Kenneth.
In one of the four homes where victims were shot, three children—3-years-old, 6-months-old, and 4-days-old—were found unharmed.
“It’s absolutely shocking some of the scenes. It’s not one you can simply go in, process, collect the evidence, and call it a day,” Piketon Sheriff Charlie Reader said during a press conference on April 27.
