BY CHRISTINE WOLFF and LEW MOORES
The Cincinnati Enquirer
UNION TOWNSHIP -- Police were looking Monday for a stolen car that could lead to the killers of a Clermont County man, whose wife found him dead Sunday night, tied up and beaten bloody on the bedroom floor.
The man, Michael J. Carpenter, 42, was discovered in the couple's Southern Trace Apartment on Picadilly Square Drive, in Clermont County's Union Township. In a 10:54 p.m. Sunday call to 911 emergency operators, the wife -- whom police are not identifying -- sobbed and described what she saw.
"I think my husband is dead. He's laying here in the middle of my bedroom floor, and there's blood all over the place. His hands are tied behind his back. I just got home from work," she said.
She had returned home to find the apartment doors unlocked and walked into the aftermath of an apparent burglary. One of her silk blouses was on the ground outside, and her jewelry box and other items looked ransacked, she told dispatchers.
Mr. Carpenter was undressed and his hands were tied with a sock, she said. His face was bloody, "like he's been beat up. I think he's gone," she said.
Police on Monday said little more than that they were investigating the homicide. An autopsy was completed Monday by the Hamilton County coroner's office, but no details were released.
Mr. Carpenter's car apparently was taken from the apartment lot. Police are looking for a white 1992 Ford Tempo, a four-door sedan, with Ohio plate AUJ 8269, said Union Township Sgt. Michael McMillan.
The crime sparked worry among residents in the neighborhood, which includes other apartment buildings and hundreds of people. Neighbors early Monday evening said there has been talk now about forming a Block Watch program.
"It's really scary back here," said Terri Williams, who lives in the complex. "He was just a sweet man. (Mr. Carpenter) was very friendly, a nice person."
Children on bicycles and on foot milled around Monday, saying Mr. Carpenter often walked his dog -- a small terrier-like dog -- and allowed children to pet it.
Neighbors said Mr. Carpenter had lived there about five years. Nicole Davis, 13, an Amelia Middle School student, said the killing was the talk of school. She said many children in the area are inside by dark, and parents are telling them to stay close to home.
Neighbors said the area is rife with speeders on its narrow street, and there is vandalism and fighting among juveniles.
