Second Death in Craigslist 'Farm Hand' Ad

The death toll in the Craigslist Farm Hand case has risen to two, with the discovery of a body identified as Timothy Kern, 47, of Massilon, Ohio.

Kern disappeared Nov. 13 after telling his family he was headed to Akron after seeing an online job ad for a farm hand. It was apparently the same ad answered by David Pauley, 51, of Norfolk, Va. His body was found earlier in a rural area south of Akron.

Kern's body was found near the Rolling Acres shopping mall in Akron and Noble County officials said another body had been found in a shallow grave nearby, but had not yet been identified.

Earlier, a South Carolina man said he answered the ad on Nov. 6 but escaped after being shot. 

Father of three

Timothy Kern, a divorced father of three sons, worked most recently cleaning gas station driveways, according to his family.  His father said Kern answered the Craigslist ad Oct. 30 and met a man at an Akron restaurant for an interview.

On Nov. 13, a friend drove him to the supposed job site.

Timothy Kern’s son, Zachary, posted on a personal blog Sunday, the Akron Beacon-Journal reported.

“Today when I woke up, I was told that my father was one of the three people killed by the latest Craigslist killer. My father answered to an ad on Craigslist about a job opportunity involving a 688 acre farm and housing in a 2 bedroom trailer," the younger Kern said.

Two people from the Akron area are in custody: a high school student who has been charged with attempted murder and 52-year-old Richard Beasley, who is in jail on unrelated charges.

Police so far are saying nothing about the probable motive in the killings.