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When police arrived at a home in northern Ohio to perform a welfare check on Thursday evening, they were met with a gruesome sight: five people, including three children, dead in an apparent quadruple murder-suicide.
It was a domestic dispute that turned deadly, officers believe.
Jason Dunham, 46; Melissa Dunham, 42; and their children Renee, 15; Amber, 12; and Evan, 9, were discovered dead at about 7:30 p.m. in their home in Lake Township, about 15 miles outside Akron, the Uniontown Police Department said in a statement.
Who are the victims?
Harry Campbell, chief investigator of the Stark County Coroner’s Office, identified the deceased as Jason Dunham, 46, Melissa Dunham, 42, and their children Renee, 15, Amber, 12, and Evan, 9.
No other people are believed to be involved at this time.
The Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation was called Thursday night to help collect and document evidence. BCI spokesman Steve Irwin said updates will be provided through Uniontown police.
How did the victims die?
All died as the result of multiple gunshot wounds, according to Campbell. He said they were pronounced dead at the home at 9:52 p.m.
Additional details such as who fired the shots haven’t been released.
Children were students at Lake Local School District
The three children were students at the Lake Local School District, which said counselors would be available.
Lake Local Superintendent Kevin Tobin said he was notified last night around 9 p.m. by the Uniontown police chief. He said the students included a ninth grader who was in the band, a seventh grader, both girls, and a third grade boy.
The district has mobilized its crisis response team. Tobin met with administrators and counselors this morning.
Counselors, mental health professionals and other resources are meeting with students and staff, he said.
“We alerted our parents and our staff (about the tragedy),” Tobin said. “And we have counselors and others meeting (with kids) as we speak. We are working through this as calm and compassionate as we can.”
The ninth grader, Tobin said, was heavily involved in the band. The band is slated to attend an away football game at Boardman Friday evening.
“This is going to impact them. They are a family and it is almost two years to the day when we lost another band student after surgery,” Tobin said. “It’s a very, very tragic incident and we will just rally as a school community and as Lake Local community.”
He added the pastoral society and other agencies will help the staff and students, as well as the community.
Who was Melissa Dunham?
According to LinkedIn, Melissa Dunham was a partner at Bober Markey Fedorovich & Co., an accounting firm based in Fairlawn. The firm announced in June that Dunham had been appointed as a new partner.
Dunham specialized in corporate tax returns and her expertise in Employer Retention Credit program reimbursements had been instrumental in optimizing benefits for the firm’s clients during the pandemic, according to the firm’s site.
“With a career spanning nearly two decades at BMF, Melissa has demonstrated exceptional leadership and contributed significantly to the firm’s success,” the announcement read.
The announcement also noted that Dunham had received many accolades including a Woman of Professional Excellence award presented by the Women’s Network and the 30 For the Future Award from the Greater Akron Chamber in 2019.
In a YouTube video from the Chamber linked below, Dunham talks about her love for the Greater Akron community.
“It’s a wonderful community to raise our children, ” she said. “I love being a part of community support services and the Girl Scouts of Northeast Ohio. And the school districts are amazing. They challenge my children. And it’s a great place to live, thrive and there’s many opportunities in this small community.”
She was involved with the Girl Scouts and said her daughters were learning to be risk-takers and leaders while in the organization.
“I really enjoy working with young women and little girls to be the best that they can be,” she said.
In the video, Dunham also mentioned that her family loved to go camping and that something people might not know about her is that she was certified to teach archery.
Elizabeth Bartz, CEO of Akron-based State and Federal Communications, had known Dunham for at least 10 to 15 years as Bober Markey Fedorovich handles her company’s accounting. Dunham was her main contact.
Bartz said she was “devastated” by the news.
“She’s a great Girl Scouts mom. She would always have her daughters send me their cookie order forms. They would deliver them in person and write me thank you notes,” Bartz said.
Who was Jason Dunham?
According to LinkedIn, Jason Dunham worked in sales and business development at POS Highway in Hartville.
Neighbors share memories of family
The next-door neighbors remembered the couple and three children — two girls and a boy — who lived there fondly on Friday morning.
Edmond Gazdacko said the couple moved in 18 years ago before they had children. He and his wife Denise always enjoyed the neighbors and never had any issues with them.
He said the three children — the youngest was 8 years old — were in the Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts. He said they played with his own grandchildren when they visited. Children from both families gathered for a baseball game in the Gazdackos’ front yard when their grandchildren visited from Oklahoma earlier this summer.
Denise Gazdacko said the woman was a wonderful mother and her husband helped the Gazdackoput up their basketball hoop. She also said the father was a nice man, but controlling.
She said one of the girls was a tomboy who did yardwork and the other was the kind who would make elaborately decorated cupcakes. Their younger brother was eager to play with them and the neighbors’ grandchildren, she said.
Where is Uniontown, Ohio?
Uniontown is an unincorporated area between Akron and Canton with its own ZIP code for portions of Green in Summit County, Lake Township in northern Stark County and some other communities.
While there is no Uniontown government, there are Uniontown policing and fire districts that cover portions of Lake Township.
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Akron Beacon Journal
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