UPDATE:
A double homicide took place during the early morning hours of September 21, 2021 in Belmont, Ohio.
Fact.
The victims, Tom and Angela Strussion, were discovered deceased inside their burning home. The property was taped off for nearly two weeks while investigators scoured for clues..
Again, facts.
The Belmont County Sheriff’s Office has not released any new information since early February when The Intelligencer in Wheeling reported the following:
On Friday Miana Smith, 25, of Guernsey Street, Bellaire pleaded guilty to extortion, a third-degree felony. According to Assistant Prosecutor Chris Gagin, Smith and her co-defendant, Anthony Michael Dibacco, 31, of the same address, blackmailed Thomas Strussion, deceased owner of the former Salsa Joe’s restaurants in Belmont and Wheeling.
Smith and Dibacco reportedly threatened to reveal that Strussion had an affair with Smith.
Gagin said Strussion paid them a total of $25,000 to conceal that information.
The last eight months, however, have been very quiet. Law enforcement officials have confirmed that officers have continued investigating all aspects of the case but have not wished to offer an update when contacted.
The following report is one that LEDE News initially published in late 2021 and it contains the information that has been released to this point in time.
On Wednesday, one year will have passed since people in the Upper Ohio Valley were shocked by tragedy.
It sure seemed as if Tom and Angela Strussion had struck gold with their Salsa Joe’s Smokehouse business model.
Their eatery in Belmont, Ohio, was an immediate hit despite opening during the beginning of the Covid pandemic, and then Tom recruited a partner from Oklahoma who invested in the opening of a Wheeling location in June in the Elm Grove area.
Although the opening was delayed several times, and staffing issues caused closures unexpectedly after opening, the new restaurant proved popular. Tom advertised primarily on social media but did have a television commercial produced in late April. His final updates on the Salsa Joe’s Smokehouse 304 and 740 Facebook pages were posted on September 20, and both locations were shuttered permanently the next day.
That’s because Tom and Angela Strussion were victims of a double homicide the morning of September 21. A neighbor called Belmont County 911 after witnessing smoke flow from the Strussion’s two-story home on Trails End Drive. Once the blaze was extinguished by firefighters, first responders discovered the deceased inside the 2,790-square-foot dwelling.
The three-bedroom house, which sits on a 1.68-acre lot, currently is listed on realtor.com for $334,300.
Hush Is the Word
Belmont County Sheriff Dave Lucas informed local media outlets soon after the house fire was extinguished that the incident was “suspicious” in nature, and then he released the fact that the Strussions were found murdered inside the home.
A few days later, the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office distributed a press release informing the public two Bellaire residents, Anthony Michael Dibacco and Miana Maylyn Smith, had been arrested for allegedly attempting to extort Tom Strussion. Lucas refused at the time to reveal what evidence his investigators possessed to support the charges levied by the county prosecutor.
The sheriff also has not released much information about the murders, including any details about the cause of the couple’s deaths, whether or not weapons were used, if video footage was acquired by systems operated by neighbors or nearby businesses, or if a motive has been determined by county, state, or federal investigators.
“When the time comes when my guys tell me we have something to announce, that’s when we will announce,” Lucas said. “But until then, the investigation is most important, and that’s why we can’t put anything out there right now.
“The last thing I want to do is put the investigation in jeopardy,” the sheriff insisted. “We’re doing everything we can to bring the people who did these horrible crimes to justice. That’s the No. 1 goal. and I know my guys are working very hard to make that happen.”
Get Away with Murder
There are more than 100 cold cases that exist in Belmont County that continue to be investigated by various law enforcement agencies when time allows.
One Belmont County resident fears the cases involving the Strussions may fall into the same category.
“My whole life I have heard that if someone wants to get away with murder, they should do it in Belmont County,” said Scott Porter from Neffs, Ohio. “I knew Tommy and his wife, and they were good people trying to make two businesses work even with all the challenges with Covid. I really hope the sheriff’s office can figure something out because people are already saying that it will never be solved.
“Belmont County is a big place with a lot of space between homes in a lot of areas,” he said. “But these murders took place in a really nice neighborhood right along U.S 40. This didn’t happen out in the middle of nowhere, so I hope someone saw something and they can find these killers.”
Bellaire Police Chief Dick Flanagan told LEDENews.com in late October the double homicide at the Strussion’s home appeared planned and orchestrated.
“I’m just like everyone else. I don’t know any of the details either,” he said. “But these murders seem different than most that take place not just here, but anywhere.”
