A 27-year-old man from Ohio faces the possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison after the horrific murder of his 24-year-old girlfriend. He allegedly attacked her with a hammer, concealed her body in plastic, and discarded it in a trash can at a park named after a beloved fictional character known for enchanting children with stories.
A Stark County jury delivered a guilty verdict on Friday for Sean Goe, convicting him of murder, felonious assault, gross abuse of a corpse, and tampering with evidence in connection with the death of Raychel Sheridan, according to court records examined by Law&Crime.
Goe faced convictions for burglary and grand theft, specifically involving a firearm or dangerous ordinance.
On Tuesday, July 2, 2024, at approximately 12:32 p.m., deputies from the Stark County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to a residence located in the 4100 block of Orchard Dale Drive NW in Plain Township concerning a missing woman named Sheridan. She was promptly registered in the national database as a person who is missing.
“While at the scene, Deputies observed a maroon Jeep Liberty, known to be registered to Raychel, traveling on Guilford Ave NW in Plain Township,” the release states. “Deputies initiated a traffic stop and made contact with the driver, 26-year-old Sean Goe of Plain Township who then fled on foot.”
In the early morning hours of July 3, officers from the Canton Police Department found Goe at a homeless shelter, where he was wanted on active warrants for burglary, grand theft of a firearm, and domestic violence involving the victim. He was detained with a bond set at $1 million.
“As a result of the search warrant executed at the apartment of Raychel Sheridan and Sean Goe, evidence was recovered indicating foul play,” police said. “Detectives have determined that Sheridan was murdered inside the apartment. At approximately 9:24 a.m. on Wednesday, July 3, 2024, a body believed to be that of Raychel Sheridan was discovered by Canton sanitation workers in a park in a Southwest area of the city of Canton.”
A body was found at an abandoned theme park located in the 400 block of Schroyer Avenue SW, which opened in 1956 and closed in the 1980s. The region transformed roughly a decade ago and was launched as a community park. A worker from the Canton Parks Department discovered a body wrapped in plastic while clearing out a trash bin and promptly contacted emergency services, according to CBS affiliate WOIO in Shaker Heights, Ohio.
A report from the Canton Repository reveals that prosecutors informed jurors that Sheridan endured a minimum of 10 strikes to the head with the blunt end of a hammer, resulting in such severe injuries that her remains were unrecognizable when matched against a photograph of the victim. The hammer was said to have been found within the apartment that Goe and Sheridan occupied together.
A bucket and gloves with DNA linked to Goe and Sheridan were allegedly discovered in the apartment.
The defense attorney for Goe allegedly contended that investigators quickly concluded Goe was responsible and conducted the investigation to validate that presumption rather than seeking the truth first.
Goe’s sentencing is set for November 18, 2024. The potential penalty he could receive is life imprisonment.
