VAN WERT, Ohio (WLIO) – A Rockford man will be sentenced for murder after a Van Wert County judge denied his motion to withdraw his no contest plea.
Ryan Houser, 39, lost his motion to withdraw the no contest plea he entered in March as part of a plea deal. The judge found him guilty in the 2023 death of Barbara Ganger. Houser attempted to withdraw the plea during his May sentencing hearing, where he faced a prison sentence of 15 years to life.
On Labor Day in 2023, Van Wert police officers were called to Ganger’s apartment for a welfare check. They found her dead with gunshot wounds to the stomach and eye.
