In the early morning hours of May 6, 2020, the life of 28-year-old Ryan Joseph Ross was tragically cut short in a fatal shooting at the Sycamore Springs apartment complex on the far east side of Seymour, Indiana. Ross, a male, had gone to the apartment of his ex-girlfriend, Dakota Anderson, to exchange custody of their child. The situation took a deadly turn with the presence of Anderson's new boyfriend, Tobias Au.
Shortly after Ross entered the apartment, he was shot multiple times by
Au, who had arrived at the residence just before him. It was Au himself who contacted the sheriff's department to report the shooting. When officers arrived at the Bent Tree Lane apartment at approximately 5:37 a.m., they discovered Ross deceased inside.
Both Au and Anderson were taken to the sheriff's department for questioning. Following the interviews and an initial investigation at the scene, Tobias Au, a 30-year-old from Hope, was arrested on a preliminary charge of murder in connection with Ross's death. Investigators learned that a protective order had been issued in January for Ross to stay away from Anderson, though it was unclear if he had been officially served with it. Despite the order, Anderson had reportedly been allowing Ross to come to the residence for the purpose of exchanging their child. While the immediate events leading to the shooting were detailed, a definitive motive for the killing remained under investigation.
