BREAKING NEWS | Fostoria Police, BCI Arrest Man in 2006 Murder Cold Case

Author: FFP Ai Bot

FOSTORIA – A Fostoria man was arrested Thursday on a murder indictment in the 2006 killing of Jeffrey Risner, a case that had gone unsolved for 20 years, the Fostoria Police Division announced Thursday evening.

According to a press release dated Oct. 29, 2026, Fostoria police and special agents from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) arrested Bradly Ray, 50, of Fostoria, on an indictment warrant in connection with the 2006 murder of Risner.

Earlier Thursday, a Seneca County grand jury returned a secret indictment charging Ray with murder under Ohio Revised Code 2903.02, the release said. Seneca County Common Pleas Court Judge Damon Alt signed the indictment. After the warrant was issued, patrol officers, detectives and special agents took Ray into custody without incident, police said.

Ray was taken to the Seneca County Jail, where he is being held without bail pending his initial court appearance, according to the release. An indictment is a formal charge, not a finding of guilt.

A 20-year-old case

The investigation began after Risner’s body was found on March 2, 2006, in a utility building behind his home in the 100 block of Palmer Street in Fostoria, police said. The case remained unsolved for several years and was classified as a cold case after all significant and viable leads had been exhausted.

Over the past year, the Fostoria Police Department worked with agents from BCI’s Cold Case Unit to review the case and reopen the investigation, leading to Thursday’s arrest, the release said.

Risner was 50 when he died, according to the Ohio Attorney General’s cold case homicide database, which has listed his death as an unsolved homicide investigated by Fostoria police and BCI.

In a 2021 report by 13 ABC (WTVG), Fostoria police said investigators had developed a DNA profile of an unknown male from the scene that produced no match when it was run through the national CODIS database in 2013, and that they hoped forensic genealogy would provide new leads. Thursday’s release does not say what evidence led to the indictment.

Chief credits detectives, BCI agents

“Reaching this point after 20 years is the result of the dedication and careful planning of Fostoria Detective Sergeant Brooks Hall and BCI Special Agents Doug Burke, Lori Braunschweiger, and Darien Spann. Our strong relationship with BCI and its agents is a tremendous asset to an agency of our size. This interagency collaboration continues to produce remarkable results,” Fostoria Police Chief Gabe Wedge said in the release.

Police said the investigation is ongoing. To protect its integrity and to safeguard due process, no additional information will be released at this time, the release said.

Anyone with information about the case can contact the Fostoria Police Department at (419) 435-8573 or the BCI tip line at 855-BCI-OHIO (855-224-6446).

Ray has been charged, not convicted. A criminal charge is an accusation, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

This is a developing story and will be updated as officials release more information.

Fostoria Police Department press release

Press release courtesy of the Fostoria Police Department.

Sources:
Fostoria Police Division, Facebook post and press release, Oct. 29, 2026: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1HiuMegQNf/
Ohio Attorney General, Cold Case Database, Jeffrey L. Risner: https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Files/Law-Enforcement/Investigator/Cold-Case/Homicides/Risner
13 ABC (WTVG), “Case Files: The Fostoria Murder Of Jeffrey Risner,” Nov. 3, 2021: https://www.13abc.com/2021/11/03/case-files-fostoria-murder-jeffrey-risner/
Seneca County Common Pleas Court, Judge Damon D. Alt: https://senecaohcourts.gov/about/alt/
City of Fostoria: https://www.fostoriaohio.gov/