Did you hear him?
When Ryan Allar, chief detective for the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office, held a press conference this past Wednesday, he explained tips had been offered and the leads followed, and he insisted the case is not cold.
Allar’s most important message, however, was that investigators still need the public’s help if the murders of Tom and Angela Strussion are ever to be solved.
“Regardless of how insignificant you think your information might be or whether you think we already are aware of it,” he said. “Please contact us and allow us to make that determination.
So, have you noticed any of the following with anyone you know …
- Unexplained injuries?
- A sudden departure from the area after the offense?
- The possession of new personal items or money?
- Changes in mood, lifestyle patterns, or appearance?
- Or intense interest in or avoidance of this case?
“Any, any, ANY information someone may have is welcome,” Allar said. “Any tip, small or large, even if it sounds ridiculous, just give us a call, write us a letter or an email, or send us a text message. We will look at it and address it appropriately. We’ll follow up on anything.
“So many people have reached us to us so far, and we just want that to continue,” he said. “But there’s someone out there sitting around and thinking, ‘Maybe I should tell them,’ but never does because they think we’ll think they’re stupid. That’s never the case, trust me. I just want to hear from anyone and everyone who might be able to help us bring this to a conclusion so we can give some peace to Tom and Angela’s families.”
Why ‘Shush’ Is the Only Word
“The fact I can’t comment on any of the facts of this case doesn’t mean there aren’t people out there who know what happened to Tom and Angela,” he said. I just can’t speak to any of the facts of the case right now.”
Allar has repeated those words a countless number of times since September 21, 2021.
Yes, firefighters responded to a 9-1-1 call that morning along Trails End Road. Once the blaze was extinguished, the first responders did discover the couple deceased. The victims were identified as the owners of two Salsa Joe’s locations, and Belmont County Sheriff Dave Lucas announced the day after that Tom and Angela had been murdered.
Was there a struggle? Were the victims bound? Did deputies discover signs of torture? Have any employees, from the Belmont or Wheeling locations, offered any clues?
Crickets.
And the detective also will not discuss the cause of death or describe the crime scene. Allar will not confirm or deny if weapons were utilized, if a motive has been determined, or if investigators believe the perpetrator(s) that committed these murders live locally or are from afar.
“The main reason why we can’t share a lot of the details about the ongoing investigating is because releasing details to the public is because it could damage the case and the investigation,” Allar explained. “We spend a lot of time looking into everything we hear and the majority of those leads have been found to be false or only rumor. But yes, we look into everything we are told by the public, trust me on that.
“We know there are rumors out there. There are many, many, many rumors out there,” the investigator said. “Another reason why we don’t share a lot of information is because we don’t want to taint a possible jury pool. If that happens, there would be a change of venue and this case could be tried something around Cincinnati, and no one wants that to happen.”
Allar said the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office has “enlisted the assistance of our state and federal partners,” and authorities also have established lines of communication for members of the public to utilize “which can be done unanimously.”
The “hotline” telephone number is 740-695-7933 Ext. 122. The web page is belmontsheriff.com. The Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100066677853645,
“Everyone sure seems to know exactly what happened and, by God, if they were working on the case, it would have already been solved and taken care of by now,” Allar said. “Now, I say that with a lot of sarcasm, but we’ve heard it plenty and that’s OK. This is definitely one of the bigger cases this office has ever encountered, and it’s been hours upon hours of work many of us have been into it so far.
“We’ve received hundreds and hundreds of tips that have turned into nothing, but you know what? I would rather run down something that turned out to be nothing than have nothing to do other than stare at a wall of facts that haven’t told us anything new,” the detective added. “That’s why we definitely do not mind getting all of the tips because we have great people here who are going to check them all out. The truth is out there.”
