MOUNT VERNON — The tragic murder-suicide that left three Gambier residents dead on Sunday was compounded later that day with the reported death of a fourth family member.
Jack L. Dennis, 69, died in his Hawthorne Apartments residence on McGibney Road on Saturday evening. Jack was the brother of Gary Dennis, who was shot to death by his son on Sunday morning.
According to Knox County Coroner Dr. Jeffrey Bowers, Jack Dennis died sometime Saturday evening, before the shooting incident in Gambier. Bowers said he does not believe the two events are related, and called it a “very odd coincidence.”
Although the cause of death is undetermined at this time, there were no signs of foul play. Bowers said Dennis had a history of severe diabetes and had been in a diabetic coma more than once.
“The fact that there were no direct indications [of a cause of death] makes diabetes as the cause that much more likely,” said Bowers.
By the time his body was recovered on Sunday, after the Gambier shooting, Jack Dennis had already been deceased close to 24 hours, according to preliminary reports. Bowers said he was found laying on his couch with his dinner still on the coffee table in front of him. The body was sent to the Licking County Coroner’s Office for an autopsy.
“This was probably a natural death,” said Bowers, “although the extremely odd timing [in relation to the family shooting] led us to treat this as a crime scene. We’re just being careful.”
Bowers said agents from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation were called in to process the scene.
Mount Vernon Police Capt. George Hartz said the investigation is ongoing. According to Bowers, a motive has yet to be determined in the Gambier murders.