Lucasville Man Kills Dad and Himself, Setting Two Fires
New information on a story SCDN broke Saturday afternoon.
Lucasville is in shock after a resident killed his dad, set two houses on fire, and committed suicide on Saturday.
This is the second case of a child killing an elderly parent in the past few weeks, coming on the heels of a New Boston man fatally beating his mother before jumping off the Grant Bridge in a suicide attempt.
Saturday afternoon, deputies and firefighters responded to a 911 call from a man identifying himself as J.T. Grooms reporting a fire on US 23 in Lucasville and another fire on Nesbitt Road. The caller said he had killed his father, 76-year-old John Grooms, and the body was at the Nesbitt Road location.
Norfolk Southern Railroad shut down train traffic in the area of the fires to ensure first responders could make it to the scene. Valley Township, Jefferson Township, Morgan Township, Union Township, Rubyville, Rosemount, and South Webster Fire Departments responded to the fire while deputies contacted the Scioto County Coroner.
Scioto County Sheriff David Thoroughman said bodies were recovered at both homes and transported to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office for autopsy. At this time, it appears to be a case of murder/suicide.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office will be investigating the fires along with the Scioto County Sheriff’s Office. Anyone with information should contact Detective Jackson at 740-354-7566.