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Death of Harrodsburg man ruled a homicide

Apparent victim had lived with murder suspect

July 30, 2012|By DAVID BROCK | dbrock@amnews.com

The death of a Harrodsburg man who was last seen with the suspect in a deadly double shooting has been ruled a homicide.

Lincoln County Coroner Farris Marcum said Monday the final autopsy report from the state medical examiner’s office in Frankfort classified the death of Clint Disken, 31, as a homicide, although a cause of death was not determined. Marcum said the level of decomposition made it impossible to identify the exact manner of death or complete a toxicology report.

Disken shared a trailer home at 55 Fairlane Ave. in Hustonville with Thomas Hager Jr. until he was last seen in early March. Disken's mother, Patricia Devine, reported him missing after news broke that Hager, 39, of Danville had been arrested in the shooting deaths of Mark Snyder, 21, of Waynesburg and Ted Sparks, 54, of Danville on May 21 at Sparks’ home.

The last time Devine saw or heard from Disken was March 3 when he and Hager stopped by her Harrodsburg home on their way to a restaurant in Frankfort. She and Disken's sister have said they believe Hager was using Disken's Facebook account following his death to make it appear Disken was in Bowling Green.

On May 25, authorities found Disken’s body in the cellar of a barn behind the trailer on Fairlane Avenue after Hager’s former in-laws — who own the trailer and live on the property — reported an odor. At the time the remains were found, Marcum said he believed the body could have been there for several weeks.

During the initial autopsy, Marcum said there were no signs of gunshot or stab wounds or any other obvious indicators of trauma.

Marcum acknowledged Disken’s death being ruled a homicide without a clear cause seems to indicate the law enforcement investigation has yielded additional information. However, he does not know what may have been uncovered.

Trooper Paul Blanton, a spokesman for Kentucky State Police post in Richmond, said the death investigation by Detective Monte Owens is ongoing and the case has not been reclassified a homicide. He said Owens is continuing to conduct interviews.

Blanton indicated a case could be presented to the commonwealth's attorney in the near future, but he declined to elaborate on what charges may be forthcoming. According to Blanton, state police do not identify individuals as “persons of interest” and said Hager is not officially a suspect.

Although Hager has been interviewed, at this point he would only be considered a witness, Blanton said. He has not been charged with any crime related to Disken’s death.

Hager was arraigned July 10 in Boyle Circuit Court for allegedly murdering Snyder and Sparks and assaulting Phillip White, 37, of Lancaster, who survived being shot while trying to flee the scene. The case is scheduled for a status hearing Aug. 7.

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