Henry Christopher Schrader, a 59-year-old White/Caucasian male from Mount Hope, West Virginia, died on September 5, 2023, in a violent shooting that authorities described as an apparent double murder-suicide. His death unfolded in the Price Hill area of Mount Hope, where deputies with the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office were called to 366 Legends Highway around a quarter before 8:00 that evening for a report of a possible shooting. The call was urgent and dangerous from the beginning because the suspected shooter, identified by authorities as 24-year-old Jesse Dech, was reportedly still on the scene.
When deputies arrived, Dech was said to have threatened either to have a shootout with officers or to take his own life. After law enforcement gained entry into the residence, they found three people dead from gunshot wounds.
The victims were identified as Henry Schrader and James Shrader, reported by authorities as James Shrader, age 60, while obituary information also connects Henry to a brother named James Schrader. Dech was also found dead at the scene.
Investigators believed Jesse Dech had gained access to the home and killed Henry Schrader and James Shrader before dying by suicide. Because Dech was found dead, there was no arrest, trial, or conviction in the case. The case was treated as a murder-suicide investigation rather than a search for an at-large suspect, and the known suspect was identified as Dech.
The investigation took another disturbing turn after authorities searched Dech’s home and reported finding materials used to build a pressure bomb. That discovery added another layer of danger to the case and brought additional agencies into the investigation, including the Fayette County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, West Virginia State Police, Oak Hill Police Department, and Mount Hope Fire Department. Officials continued to investigate the circumstances, but the public details released pointed to Dech as the person responsible for the deaths of Henry Schrader and James Shrader before he ended his own life.
Outside the violence of that night, Henry Schrader was remembered as a Mount Hope resident who had been born in Beckley, West Virginia, and had worked for Walmart for 17 years. He enjoyed riding four-wheelers and had family members left to mourn him, including his son, siblings, half siblings, and other relatives. His funeral arrangements were handled by Tyree Funeral Home in Mount Hope, with burial at Turley Cemetery in Oak Hill later that month.
