Anthony Dia was a 26-year-old Toledo, Ohio, police officer shot and killed in the line of duty on July 4, 2020, while responding to a disturbance call at a Home Depot parking lot. His death drew wide community support for his widow and two young sons, and it later became entangled in a criminal case against his own father, who pleaded guilty in 2025 to stealing from a foundation created in the officer’s name.
Who Anthony Dia Was
Anthony Hussein Dia was born in Toledo on January 6, 1994, to Younes “Tony” Dia and Gina Long.1Ansberg-West Funeral Home. Anthony Tony Dia Obituary He married his wife, Jayme, on April 29, 2012, and the couple had two sons, Younes and Maytham. He joined the Toledo Police Department in July 2018 after two years with the Mercy Health Police Department, giving him four years in law enforcement at the time of his death.2Officer Down Memorial Page. Police Officer Anthony Dia His widow described him as a “true public servant” who looked after elderly neighbors, cared for stray dogs, and watched over children in his extended family.313abc. Christmas Cruz Continues Fallen Officer Anthony Dia’s Legacy of Helping Others
How He Was Killed
Shortly after midnight on July 4, 2020, Dia responded to a 911 call about an intoxicated man harassing people at an informal car show in the Home Depot parking lot at 1035 West Alexis Road in Toledo.4Officer Down Memorial Page. Police Officer Anthony Hussein Dia – Reflections He was the first officer to arrive. According to witnesses, the man was walking away when he turned and fired a single round from a handgun, striking Dia in the chest.5ABC News. Ohio Police Officer Shot to Death in Home Depot Parking Lot Dia returned fire as the suspect fled into a nearby wooded area.
Witnesses rushed to help, and another responding officer drove Dia to a hospital, where he died from his wound. His final recorded words were “tell my family I love them.”613abc. Remembering Fallen TPD Officer Anthony Dia
The Shooter
The suspect was identified as Edward Allen Henry, 57, of Morenci, Michigan.7Monroe News. Morenci Man Who Shot Officer Had Long Criminal History Toledo police deployed a drone and a canine unit to search the woods behind the parking lot. At about 3:15 a.m., officers heard a single gunshot from the tree line. Henry was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.8Cleveland.com. Toledo Police Officer Shot and Killed in Home Depot Parking Lot, Suspect Found Dead
Henry had a criminal record that included felony drug possession and assault offenses, and a 2011 conviction for disorderly conduct and impaired driving tied to an incident where he assaulted police. At the time of the shooting, he was the subject of an outstanding Toledo warrant for misdemeanor public intoxication, public indecency, and menacing from a 2019 confrontation with a resident.7Monroe News. Morenci Man Who Shot Officer Had Long Criminal History
Memorials and Support for His Family
In August 2022, a stretch of State Route 184 (Alexis Road) between mile markers 6 and 7, near the Home Depot where Dia was killed, was officially dedicated as the “Officer Anthony Dia Memorial Highway” under Ohio House Bill 19.9NBC 24. Alexis Road Renamed Officer Anthony Dia Memorial Highway Near Scene of His Death U.S. Representative Marcy Kaptur entered a statement honoring Dia into the Congressional Record and asked that a flag be flown over the U.S. Capitol in his memory for presentation to the family.10Office of Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur. Kaptur Statement in Honor of Toledo Police Officer Anthony Dia
The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation paid off the mortgage on the Dia family home through its Fallen First Responder Home Program, which helps the families of officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty who leave behind young children.11Tunnel to Towers Foundation. Foundation to Pay Mortgage on Family Home of Fallen Officer Anthony Dia
Each December, an “Officer Anthony Dia Christmas Cruz” organized by family friend Dee Lynn gathers decorated vehicles, tow trucks, and illuminated Jeeps for a police-escorted convoy. Jayme Dia and her sons lead the parade in a cruiser, delivering donated toys to the Promedica Russell J. Ebeid Children’s Hospital and pet supplies to the Toledo Humane Society. The event reached its sixth year in December 2025.313abc. Christmas Cruz Continues Fallen Officer Anthony Dia’s Legacy of Helping Others The family also holds an annual Fourth of July cookout at the Home Depot where Anthony was killed.12WTOL. Officer Anthony Dia
The Foundation Fraud
After Anthony Dia’s death, his father, Tony Dia, founded the Officer Anthony Dia Foundation, saying it would support first responders and their families with a focus on youth and community outreach.1313abc. Tony Dia Says Officer Dia Foundation Not Dissolved Yet, Will Be The organization drew public attention and donor money, and it ran a Harley-Davidson motorcycle raffle that was later canceled. Donors complained of difficulty obtaining refunds for their $100 tickets, with some waiting six months or longer.1413abc. Officer Anthony Dia Foundation Under Investigation
A 13 Action News investigation found that the foundation had never obtained 501(c)(3) nonprofit status with the IRS. Tony Dia apologized, saying he had “mistakenly assumed that the foundation automatically held 501(c)(3) status.”1413abc. Officer Anthony Dia Foundation Under Investigation He dissolved the foundation in late 2023, citing financial constraints. By then, the Ohio Attorney General’s office and the Bureau of Criminal Investigation had opened a criminal investigation into its finances.
Guilty Plea
Tony Dia was charged with felony grand theft and telecommunications fraud, and he pleaded guilty to both counts on April 16, 2025, in Lucas County Common Pleas Court.1513abc. Fallen TPD Officer’s Father Accused of Misusing Foundation Money Pleads Guilty
Prosecutors said forensic accounting confirmed he had stolen roughly $26,000 from the foundation between August 2022 and January 2024, though officials said the true total was likely higher because of the volume of cash the foundation handled. Michael Loisel, Chief of Special Units with the Lucas County Prosecutor’s office, said, “There is probably more missing but unknown.” Investigators found foundation funds spent on gas, groceries, restaurants, and cryptocurrency. Between November 2020 and May 2022, six payments totaling $2,200 went from the foundation’s bank account to an unidentified woman, with additional payments sent to a person in Florida.1513abc. Fallen TPD Officer’s Father Accused of Misusing Foundation Money Pleads Guilty
Sentence
On May 28, 2025, Judge James Bates sentenced Tony Dia to 180 days in jail at the Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio in Stryker, followed by three years of community control. The judge also imposed a suspended 18-month prison sentence that would take effect if Dia violated probation. Bates said “the defendant was in a position of trust more so than a regular theft.” Dia was ordered to pay roughly $26,000 in restitution. Defense attorney Martin McManus argued that the loss of his son had left Tony Dia struggling with depression during the period the money was misused.1613abc. Tony Dia Sentenced for Misusing Officer Anthony Dia Foundation Money
On August 8, 2025, Tony Dia asked the court to suspend the remainder of his sentence or convert it to work release. His attorneys said he had paid back $26,000, leaving a balance of only $314. Judge Lindsay Navarre denied the request without a detailed explanation.1713abc. Tony Dia Asked to Be Released Early, Judge Denies Request
What the Scandal Has Cost His Widow
In May 2025, days before the sentencing, Jayme Dia released a lengthy public video about the toll the preceding five years had taken on her. She said she had no involvement in the Officer Anthony Dia Foundation and was frustrated that the fraud still reflected on her family. “It feels like we carry the weight of that,” she said.1813abc. Wife of Fallen Toledo Police Officer Speaking Up Amid Turbulent Five Years
She also disclosed that she had unknowingly co-signed three loans totaling $481,000 for Tony Dia’s tow truck business. She said she learned the loans were delinquent only when a letter arrived informing her she was being sued, and she expressed fear of losing her home. She raised concerns as well about the status of her husband’s retired service weapon, which remained in Tony Dia’s possession ahead of his expected felony conviction.1813abc. Wife of Fallen Toledo Police Officer Speaking Up Amid Turbulent Five Years
Tony Dia replied publicly on Facebook, saying he and his family had been “used, lied to, and left behind.”1813abc. Wife of Fallen Toledo Police Officer Speaking Up Amid Turbulent Five Years