Men Killed and Eaten by Dog-Killing Arsonist

Peggy Ondrea was assured it was safe. Her grandson, Jared, 22, struggled with mental health issues and lived with her. Representatives of the South Carolina Department of Mental Health advised her that placing Jared in a local care home could provide him with the resources he otherwise couldn't access. However, Ondrea alleges, those representatives did not share that the care home in question also operated as a halfway home for released convicted criminals. And one of those released criminals was a danger to everyone nearby. What transpired is a gristly tale of murder and cannibalism that has shocked the nation.

Disappearances and Deaths

In March 2023, Jared Ondrea disappeared. He had been in residence in the care home for less than a month. Authorities searched but found no trace of him.

Four months later, another resident of the same facility, Deshea Butler, 35, also vanished. A search found his body two days later in a wooded area across the street from the care home, wrapped in a black and white blanket and with trash on his head.

After reviewing video surveillance, police discovered evidence connecting Butler's roommate, Marc-Anthony Cantrell, 25, to the disappearance. As police and the public learned about Cantrell's history and heard his subsequent confession, America got a glimpse into a true heart of darkness.

Fire and Blood

In 2018, police arrested Marc-Anthony Cantrell for attempting to burn down his parents' home. After being detained, Cantrell confessed that he had started the fire to cover up a different crime: torturing and killing his family's three dogs. He was concerned about being caught as he had allegedly killed his family's dogs in the past as well.

In 2019, Cantrell was convicted of killing the dogs and for second-degree arson.

After being arrested in connection to Butler's death, Cantrell confessed that he had strangled Butler to death and then hit him in the head with lifting weights so he could drink Butler's blood. Allegedly, he drank Butler's blood over the course of several days from a coffee cup.

While confessing to Butler's murder, Cantrell also admitted to the murder of Jared Ondrea. He allegedly strangled Jared and then dumped his body in a trash can. Jared's body has never been found, although authorities believe his remains are buried in a local landfill.

Cantrell also allegedly admitted he cut off one of Jared's ears and both of Butler's and ate them to "gain their power," as reported by TooFab. An autopsy on Butler's body supported Cantrell's description of events.

In attempting to explain his actions, Cantrell blamed an alternate personality he called Robert Baldwin.

Cantrell is now in a South Carolina state prison while awaiting trial for the murders.

Family Demands Answers

The lawsuit, which names New Hope Solutions Home LLC, the operating company of the care facility and its owner Brittany Reynolds-Jackson, claims that their representatives misled Ondrea regarding the nature of the care home and its safety. The lawsuit also names the South Carolina Department of Mental Health.

According to WIS10, Joe McCulloch, Ondrea's attorney, said, "Sheep should never be put with wolves."

As TooFab reported, the lawsuit stated, "Sadly, every bit of this was avoidable. Cantrell — who had every telltale sign of a budding serial killer — never should have been placed in a home with vulnerable adults. Upon information and belief, SCDMH failed to take any appropriate steps to treat Cantrell or to otherwise prevent the obvious danger that he posed to the public and to those living in close proximity to him."

The suit also makes note that, while in prison, Cantrell "had gotten devil horns tattooed on his forehead, signifying his love and worship of Satan," according to the TooFab. If his confession is proven true in a court of law, perhaps the true devil is the one Cantrell sees in the mirror.

References: 'Budding serial killer' ate victims at state-approved Columbia care home, lawsuit says | 'We thought we were putting him in a safe place': Woman files lawsuit after grandson’s death | 'Budding Serial Killer' Murdered, Ate Residents Who Went Missing from Mental Health Facility: Lawsuit | He woke up holding an ax, then set the house on fire to hide what he'd done, SC cops say | Dog-killing 'psychopath' murdered two residents at Columbia care home, lawsuit alleges