Man indicted in 2001 cold case murder of ex-wife in Ohio

OHIO — More than two decades after Regina Rowe Hicks disappeared and was later found dead, her ex-husband has been indicted in connection with her murder.

Paul Hicks, 50, of Sandusky, was arrested Tuesday afternoon following a Huron County grand jury indictment. He faces three counts of murder and one count of kidnapping.

The arrest was carried out by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) and the U.S. Marshals Service.

Regina Hicks, 25, vanished on the evening of Oct. 18, 2001, after leaving her boyfriend’s home to pick up her son. She never arrived.

Four days later, her white Chevrolet Camaro was found submerged in a pond on Section Line Road 30 in Willard. Her body was inside the vehicle.

The case was investigated by BCI at the request of the Huron County Sheriff’s Office.

It is being prosecuted by Huron County Prosecutor James Sitterly with support from the Ohio Attorney General’s Special Prosecutions Section.

Attorney General Dave Yost and Prosecutor Sitterly announced the indictment Wednesday.

Authorities emphasize that indictments are not convictions, and Hicks is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.