Brother indicted in 'ritualistic killings'
Pensacola, FL
Donald Wayne Hartung was indicted today on three counts of first degree premeditated murder in the death of his mother, Voncile Smith, and two half brothers, John Smith and Richard Smith.
All three bodies were found on July 31, 2015 in their home on Deerfield Drive.
Hartung was arrested Oct. 27 — more than three months after the bodies of Voncile Smith and her sons John and Richard Smith were discovered in their home.
They had reportedly been beaten with hammers, as well as had their throats slit. Richard Smith, an employee of the Department of Homeland Security, was also shot.
A few days after the murders, an Escambia County Sheriff's deputy told the media that the killings may have been motivated by "witchcraft" and the appearance of a blue moon.
The investigation leading to Hartung's arrest was an arduous, three-month process.
Eddins called the case the most complicated he had seen, and Morgan said it took five days just to collect all the evidence from the scene. The sheriff praised his staff and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for their hard work in processing the massive amount of forensic evidence.
"We're talking about individuals who are all related to each other ... so it took additional testing to separate out specific DNA," Morgan said of Hartung and the Smiths.
The family was reportedly very reclusive, and allowed few people into the home, investigators said. Hartung lived in a separate residence a short distance away.
Both the investigation and arrest were conducted by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant State Attorney Bridgette Jensen is prosecuting the case.