Middletown Municipal Court Judge Mark Wall advised the defendants Tuesday, Aug. 10, during their arraignments that the aggravated murder charges carry a minimum penalty of life in prison with parole in 20 years up to the death penalty.
According to police, Manis knew Kakaris and was possibly lured to the home at 1316 First Ave. on the promise of drugs or sex Monday afternoon, Aug. 9. The residence is occupied by her father and uncle, Benny and Troy Kakaris.
There, Manis was robbed by the assailants, beaten and choked to death, said Middletown police Detective Rodney Muterspaw.
“We started investigating last night and it looked like a robbery,” Muterspaw said. “It looks like they intended to rob him and ended up killing him.”
The three made off with $140, said Detective Steve Winters.
Troy Kakaris, who is Keri Kakaris’ uncle, said he found Manis’ body when he came home Monday afternoon. He said he had met Manis only once when he was shopping at R & R Gifts & Candles, which Manis owned.
“It’s not every day you find a dead man you don’t know,” Kakaris said. “It startled me. I couldn’t sleep last night.”
Both Renfro and Platt were denied bond during their arraignment Tuesday, Aug. 10, in Middletown Municipal Court. Bond for Kakaris was set at $500,000, cash or bond surety. A tentative preliminary hearing has been set for 3:30 p.m. Aug. 18, pending scheduling with each defendant’s legal counsel.
Renfro has no prior criminal history, while Platt has one pending misdemeanor charge and Kakaris has seven misdemeanor violations.
3 suspects arraigned
During their arraignment in Middletown Municipal Court on Tuesday, each defendant was led in separately before Judge Mark Wall. Renfro and Platt were both silent and as Wall explained that a charge of aggravated murder carries a minimum penalty of life in prison with a chance of parole after 20 years and up to a maximum punishment of death.
But as Kakaris was told by Wall a complicity to aggravated murder could carry the same penalty, she exclaimed “Oh my God,” before covering her face with her hands. After the revelation, she was led away to her holding cell, her face scrunched up and red as she tripped over the metal shackles around her feet.
All three defendants are tentatively scheduled for a preliminary hearing Aug. 18 at 3:30 p.m. in Middletown Municipal Court, pending legal counsel approval.
Families react
Family members of Manis were huddled together in the living room of his home on Arlington Avenue Tuesday afternoon. They declined to comment on the case.
At Manis’ second-hand store and pawn shop, R&R Gifts & Candles at 1209 Central Ave., the lights were off and the store was closed. A sign that said “Call Randy Anytime” still hung in the doorway Tuesday afternoon.
Troy Kakaris, who found Manis’ body and called 911, said he didn’t know what to think when he came home Monday afternoon just before 1 p.m. and found the door to his home slightly ajar.
After tentatively pushing it open and seeing no one in the living room, Troy said he went inside, rounded the corner and saw a body in the small hallway between the living room and kitchen. Not knowing the man but believing him to be passed out, he stepped over the body, went into the kitchen and placed his Coke in the refrigerator.
It’s only when Troy said he turned around to head back to the living room that he saw Manis’ face, wide-eyed and blue-lipped, and realized he was dead.
Troy said his niece sometimes stopped by the house to visit her father, but he had never met Manis before outside of seeing him once at his shop.
Kakaris’ grandmother, Nettie Baird, said she was still in disbelief as she sat in the home where Manis died, staring at the patch of green carpet that had been cut out and taken away by police as evidence.
“I don’t condone what happened. It is a damn tragedy and a sin,” Baird said. “But I love her. She’s my granddaughter.”
This is the third homicide in Middletown this year, according to police.
Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2843 or jheffner@coxohio.com.
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