‘Vampires’ Suspected In Two Deaths Kentucky Teenagers Arrested In Slayings Of Florida Couple

A group of teens from a self-described “Vampire Clan” in Kentucky were arrested Thursday night in Baton Rouge, La., on murder warrants in the bludgeoning deaths of a Florida couple.

Richard and Naomi Wendorf were found beaten to death in Eustis late Monday and their 15-year-old daughter, Heather, was missing. At first, investigators feared she had been abducted. Then they realized she was a suspect, along with her former boyfriend and three other teenagers linked to the Kentucky group.

The five were picked up about 10:30 p.m. EST in Baton Rouge, said Lake County, Fla., Sheriff’s Lt. Chris Daniels. Daniels did not have any details of the arrests.

Authorities had thought the five were on their way to Kentucky.

“They apparently like to suck blood. They cut each other’s arms and suck the blood. They cut up small animals and suck the blood. They honestly believe they’re vampires,” Murray, Ky., police detective Sgt. Mike Jump said Thursday.

Heather Wendorf, a granddaughter of a former official with the organization of evangelist Billy Graham, was thought to be traveling with the Kentucky teens in her father’s blue 1994 Ford Explorer.

The vehicle was missing when Heather Wendorf’s 17-year-old sister, Jennifer, found her parents’ bodies in separate rooms of their rural home late Monday night, the Lake County sheriff’s office said.

The sheriff’s office said there was no evidence of satanic rituals in the deaths, but they said Heather Wendorf had told friends she was a demon in past lives and had talked with spirits during human blood-drinking rituals.

Prosecutors issued murder warrants Wednesday for Heather Wendorf; Roderick Ferrell, 16; and Dana Cooper, 19, both of Murray; and Scott Anderson, 16, of Mayfield, Ky.

Another teenager from Murray, Sarah “Shea” Remington, 16, also known as Charity Lynn Keesee, was charged with being an accessory to murder after the fact.

Ferrell lived in Florida for a while and attended Eustis High School with Heather before dropping out last year.

The Orlando Sentinel reported Wednesday that Ferrell and Heather Wendorf dated for two years and kept in touch when he moved back to Kentucky.

It said his mother is facing attempted sodomy and rape charges on a 14-year-old boy authorities say she tried to initiate into the vampire cult.

Efforts to have Kentucky authorities confirm the account on Thanksgiving were unsuccessful.

From what authorities and schoolmates told the Sentinel, Ferrell and Heather Wendorf stood out in their rural communities. He sported shoulder-length black hair, wore a black trench coat, carried a wooden stick and boasted of immortality as a vampire.

She wore purple hair, black fishnet stockings and a dog chain around her neck.

Police in Kentucky suspect the teenagers’ cult, “The Vampire Clan,” has about 30 members.

Earlier this month, Calloway County officials said one of the Murray teenagers was charged with three misdemeanor counts for breaking into the animal shelter.

One puppy was stomped to death, and another was mutilated. Kentucky law prevents a juvenile from being identified in such cases.

James Wendorf, a 75-year-old retired lawyer for the Billy Graham Crusade, hopes investigators are wrong about his granddaughter.

“Heather’s so quiet. She’s a demure little girl,” he said.

“I never saw any evidence of anything like that.”