VAN WERT, Ohio (WLIO) - A Rockford man has withdrawn is no contest plea to a murder charge during his sentencing hearing on Wednesday.
A hearing has been set for May 22nd for 39-year-old Ryan Houser to continue to discussions about withdrawing his no contest plea for the murder of Barbara Ganger.
In March, the Van Wert County Common Pleas Court judge found Houser guilty of murder and he was facing a sentence of 15 years to life in prison. As part of his plea deal, the rest of the charges he was facing were dropped. But they could be reinstated depending on what happens during the upcoming hearing.
On Labor Day of 2023, Van Wert police officers were called to Ganger's apartment for a welfare check. They found dead with gunshot wounds in the stomach and the eye.
