An Ohio man is in custody after his two children made a frantic 911 call Wednesday morning, telling police they had found their mother dead in her bedroom — and their stepfather nowhere to be found.
Robert Andre Ross, 49, was arrested in Morgantown, West Virginia, hours after his wife, Ashley Ross, was discovered dead inside their Alliance, Ohio home. The children, both juveniles, called 911 after finding her body, according to the Alliance Police Department.
Investigators who responded to the scene determined Ashley Ross had been killed. Alliance Police Chief Aken-Ra X said it was “obvious” to officers at the scene that she was a victim of homicide, though specific details about how she died were not released publicly.
A murder warrant was issued for Robert Ross as authorities named him a suspect early in the investigation.
Law enforcement moved quickly. The Alliance Police Department teamed up with the U.S. Marshals Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force to track him down. A license plate reader picked up his vehicle, alerting authorities to his location across state lines in Morgantown, West Virginia, where local police pulled him over during a traffic stop.
Ross was taken into custody without incident.
He remains in custody in West Virginia and is expected to be extradited to Stark County, Ohio. As of now, he has not yet been formally charged.
The two children were taken in by relatives who came to the home following the discovery. Their ages were not made public.
The investigation is ongoing.
