Vigils, funeral planned for Seven Hills murder victim found in backyard

SEVEN HILLS, Ohio - A series of vigils have been planned in addition to the funeral for a man who was killed and buried in the backyard of a Seven Hills home.

Friends and family will remember Joe Kopp in front of the Walgreens at Pleasant Valley and Broadview in Seven Hills every night from 4 p.m. to dusk until his burial. There has also been a Facebook page created to remember Kopp .

Police said Kopp, a 58-year-old homeless man, was shot in the head and killed by 44-year-old Frank Dienes, who lived in the Oakwood Drive house on the property where the remains were found over the weekend.

Kopp moved in with the Dienes family in October 2009, but had not been seen in about a month. Police said they do not know when he was killed.

Dienes was charged with murder and tampering with evidence. His attorney said Dienes is maintaining his innocence.

The visitation for Kopp will be held Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Faulhaber Funeral Home on Broadview Road in Broadview Heights. The funeral will be Saturday at 10 a.m. at St. Columbkille Church.

Also, a Facebook public event mentions a midnight vigil starting at 11:30 p.m. on Friday at the Taco Bell parking lot at Broadview and Pleasant Valley roads.