Man Arrested in Hawaii, Charged with Murder of Belmont Area Couple

Andrew Isaac Griffin

(Hawaii News Now photo)

On Thursday, Belmont County Sheriff James G. Zusack announced that Andrew Isaac Griffin, 32, was arrested in Hawaii on February 28 for the 2021 homicides of  Angela and Thomas Strussion of Belmont.  

The arrest stems from a years-long investigation involving the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office for the assistance of various of various other law enforcement agencies throughout the country, Zusack said.  

Griffen is charged with two counts of aggregated murder. Formal proceedings will be given before the Belmont County Grand Jury and an indictment sought.

Court appearances will be scheduled upon Mr. Griffin’s return to Belmont County.  

The Strussions and their pets were found on September 21, 2021 following a fire at their residence located near Pancoast Road between Morristown and Lloydsville near the Pine Lake Mobile Home Park. Four days later, former Belmont County Sheriff Dave Lucas ruled the couple’s deaths as homicides.

The Strussions owned Salsa Joe’s a restaurant at 43920 National Road at Lloydsville. The business was initially established by the couple in Texas. In 2021, they formed a partnership with Griffin opening a second restaurant in Elm Grove.

The Lloydsville location was later home to My Way Café & Lounge. That business shuttered last November.

 Two years later, Griffin, who came up missing in Oklahoma, was found and arrested in Texas on outstanding Oklahoma charges.