TOLEDO, Ohio — Toledo police say a six-year-old Toledo cold case has been solved with the arrest of Tim Darrow, indicted by a Lucas County grand jury for murder in the death of his father, Alvin Darrow.
Alvin Darrow's family reported him missing from his home in north Toledo on July 28, 2017. He has never been located.
"We want this to end. We want him found to be able to bury him properly," Alvin Darrow's sister, Cheryl Bonk, told WTOL 11 following his disappearance in 2017. "It's a hurtful feeling that somebody has done something with him, and he's gone."
Alvin Darrow's other son, Jeremy, said he had been fishing at a marina with his father when Alvin Darrow went home to get some supplies. Police say Tim Darrow, 39, with whom Alvin Darrow, then 63, had a tumultuous relationship, then showed up at Alvin Darrow's home where they argued.
"We know there's an argument between Tim and Alvin and no one's heard from Alvin since then," said TPD Lt. Dan Gerken.
Alvin Darrow's house was left open with his wallet and car still there and his dogs on the loose, which was "totally unlike him," Bonk said.
Police have been working for six years to charge Tim Darrow with his father's murder, but Gerken said it's especially difficult without Alvin Darrow's body.
Police also issued an arrest warrant for Tim Darrow's friend, Michael Johnson, for obstructing justice.
"He's lied to us," Gerken. "He's obstructed some of our investigation so that's his role in it."
Johnson talked to WTOL 11 via Zoom on Wednesday, he said, from Huntington Beach, California.
He said he did "a lot of things" to help Tim Darrow, including moving a barrel around the time of Alvin Darrow's disappearance. But, he said he did not knowingly play a role in the crime, has been truthful and did not put anything in the barrel or know what was inside of it.
"I don't like people to play dumb with me," Johnson said. "I understand you're asking questions and you're stuck on the barrel; I don't care what happens to me. Yes, I helped him do a lot of things that night. I helped him scrap a car, I helped him burn some things, I helped him dig up some things."
Johnson also told WTOL 11 he had been in contact with TPD, but will fight extradition to Toledo due to what "Toledo police put me through" in the past.
Tim Darrow is in the Lucas County Jail and indicted on two counts of murder. He was already in jail on an unrelated assault charge from earlier in October when police said he assaulted a stranger. He entered a plea of not guilty.
Tim Darrow is next scheduled to appear in court Jan. 22, 2024.