Matthew J. Hoffman was born on November 1, 1980, and raised in Ohio. There isn’t much publicly available about his early childhood or family life, but as he grew older, people close to him noticed strange behavior. At one point, he was described as a loner who had a fascination with trees, leaves, and climbing. Hoffman was once a tree trimmer by profession, which matched his obsession with nature. He had a prior criminal record — in 2000, he served six years in a Colorado prison for arson and burglary after setting a condo on fire during a robbery.

After returning to Ohio, he lived a relatively quiet life in Mount Vernon. Neighbors reported odd activity, including large amounts of leaves stored inside his house and climbing gear found in strange places.

Between November 10–14, 2010, Hoffman broke into Tina Herrmann’s home in Howard, Ohio. Inside, he encountered Tina (32), her son Kody Maynard (11), and family friend Stephanie Sprang (41), stabbing and killing all three. He then abducted Tina’s 13-year-old daughter, Sarah Maynard, raped her, and held her captive in his basement. He dismembered the bodies of the three victims and hid them inside a hollow tree in the Kokosing Wildlife Preserve.

Investigators traced large tarps and trash bags found at the crime scene to purchases Hoffman made at a local Walmart, confirming his identity via surveillance cameras and vehicle records. He was arrested on November 14, 2010, and Sarah was rescued alive from his home.

On January 6, 2011, Hoffman pleaded guilty to aggravated murder (×3), kidnapping, rape, and other felony charges. In exchange for his confession and revealing the bodies, prosecutors dropped the death penalty. He received life in prison without parole.