ISP-Versailles Post Make Arrest in 41-Year-Old Cold Case

A Seymour man was arrested 41 years to the date of a Jackson County murder.

Ronald Anderson. Photo provided.

(Jackson County, Ind.) – Detectives from the Indiana State Police-Versailles Post have made an arrest 41 years to the date of a Jackson County murder.

On Tuesday, Ronald J. Anderson, 61, of Seymour, was arrested for the murder of Clifford Smith.

According to Indiana State Police, Smith was murdered in rural Jackson County on October 31, 1982. It was determined at the time that Smith died from a gunshot wound to the head.

Smith’s death was investigated in 1982 but no arrests were made. Over the year, the case has been passed to new investigators including Sgt. Kip Main, who has been actively investigating the case since September 2015.

His investigation determined that Anderson was in possession of a loaded shotgun when he and Smith left a residence on East 13th Street in the late hours of October 30, 1982. Smith’s body was found by two animal trappers on December 1, 1982, in an area along the White River near County Roads 700 East and 800 North near Rockford, just north of Seymour.

Information gathered during Sgt. Main’s investigation indicated Anderson was responsible for the death of Smith. Investigators say Anderson also returned the murder weapon back to the home on 13th Street and returned to the crime scene soon after the murder to hide potential evidence.

Anderson was taken into custody following the issuance of an arrest warrant at his residence on the east side of Seymour.

He is currently held in Jackson County Jail pending an initial appearance in Jackson County Circuit Court.