When a Chillicothe woman spotted what appeared to be a life-like Halloween prop hanging from a fence in her neighborhood on October 13, 2015, she didn’t think much of it until police arrived to the scene.
It was quickly determined that what was believed to be nothing more than a silly prop was actually a real-life horror scene. Rebecca Cade had suffered repeated blunt force trauma to both her head and neck. Her killer then left her body hung on the fence, with her left hand positioned up, so it appeared to be waving to passerbys.
Initially it was speculated that the death of Rebecca Cade was related to the murdered and missing women who were turning up all over Chillicothe throughout the years prior to her murder, but that theory was quickly ruled out when investigators made an arrest a month later.
Police received a tip that Donnie Cochenour, Jr. may have some information about the murder. During the investigation police went to the home of Cochenour’s sister, Lisa Frost, in order to ask some questions.
Investigators believe that on the night of Cade’s murder, Cochenour and her were in a field arguing. Cochenour began chasing Cade when she got caught on the fence. He then began to beat Cade repeatedly with a large rock, eventually causing her to lose consciousness. She was left there for dead as Cochenour made his way to his sister’s home.
When Cochenour arrived to Frost’s home he was muddy and covered in blood. He cleaned up in her bathroom and then Frost helped him throw his soiled clothing into a neighbor’s garbage can and cleaned up the mess in her bathroom, before driving him to a friend’s house.
Frost has since been sentenced to 12-months in prison for tampering with evidence. Cochenour has also been indited for the murder, but was determined to be mentally unfit to stand trial until September of this year. Cochenour is currently facing 15 years to life in prison for his role in the murder of Rebecca Cade.