Frederick County Murders
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Updated: 8:01 PM Oct 6, 2006
Frederick County Murders
Frederick County
The Frederick County Sheriff's Office has already made an arrest for the crime. A 20-year-old man is now behind bars.
Posted: 7:22 PM Oct 6, 2006
Reporter: Kelly Creswell
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Around eight o'clock last night police responded to a possible shooting. When they arrived, they found a two-year-old boy and his 19-year-old mother dead inside the house. Then police found the third victim dead inside a vehicle in the driveway. The fourth victim was found dead inside the residence of the suspect.

Twenty-year old Jessi Ashton Jephson lives next door to the murdered family. One of those victims, seventeen-year-old Travis Putman went to James Wood High School. He had many friends that were shocked to hear the devastating news.

"It was like our little family, we were always there to help each other and have each other backs and basically he's always the inspirational one," says Natasha Hovermale.

Police found the suspect around 1:30 a.m. near railroad tracks. Jephson was armed at the time of the arrest but was taken into custody without a fight. Police are still investigation Jepshon's motives. And they have some leads.

"There are indications that the suspect and the victim were boyfriend [and] girlfriend at one point," says Bob Williamson, the Frederick County Sheriff.

Williamson is referring to 19-year-old Amanda Orndorff who was found dead along with her two year old son and her sixty-year-old father Samuel Orndorff. The fourth victim, Travis Putman, was the nephew of Amanda. And his friends are feeling the loss deeply.

"But the only person I care about is Travis because god may he rest in peace so I want Jessi to spend the rest of his life behind bars for what he did to a good friend of mine and a good mentor," says Joshua Kline.

Jessi Ashton Jephson is being held without bond at the Northwest Regional Adult Detention Center. He is charged with one count of Capital Murder and two counts of First Degree Murder and additional charges are pending. The investigation is still going on by the Frederick County Sheriff's Office and the Commonwealth Attorney and Jepshon's court date is set for December 12.

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