Celebrity chef Anthony Milan Ross has been found guilty of slaughtering his entire family on Christmas Day.
Ross took the life of his wife, Iris, outside their apartment complex in Phoenix, Arizona, on December 25, 2017.
Following a standoff with police, he was also found to have slaughtered his 11-year-old son, Nigel, and 9-month-old daughter, Anora.
HighlightsAnthony Milan Ross was found guilty of fatally shooting his wife and two children on Christmas Day.The celebrity chef posted a cheerful holiday video with his son just hours before the 2017 crime.Prosecutors linked the attacks to his wife’s decision to file for divorce six months earlier, citing premeditation.RELATED:Celebrity chef Anthony Milan Ross was found guilty of fatally shooting his wife and two children on Christmas Day 2017
Trigger warning: This article contains detailed descriptions of homicide and the m*rder of children.
On Monday (November 3), the 53-year-old chef was found guilty of three counts of first-degree m*rder and more than two dozen additional charges related to the crime, according to Law & Crime.
He was also convicted of aggravated ass*ult and aggravated ass*ult on a police officer.
During the trial, which reportedly began in September, Maricopa County prosecutor Richard Dusterhoft said the father had warned others to “expect something big on Christmas” before the December 25 crime.
Prosecutors said the catalyst for the brutal family crime was his wife’s decision to file for divorce six months earlier.
“His five minutes of daytime TV fame was up. The money, the success – all a façade. And so was the perfect family,” said Dusterhoft.
Hours before the attacks, Ross chillingly posted a video of himself and his son singing Santa Claus Is Coming to Town, sending holiday greetings to friends and family.
Prosecutors said the attacks were triggered by Ross’s wife, Iris, filing for divorce
Later that afternoon, after his wife, Iris, went to collect their two children, Ross fatally attacked her outside the apartment complex as she tried to run away.
A witness who saw the scene unfolding asked if Iris was okay, to which the disgraced chef reportedly replied, “No.” He then pointed the weapon at the witness before going inside his apartment, where he barricaded himself with his two young children.
Witnesses outside the apartment later heard two or three more g*nshots.
What followed was an intense six-hour standoff with police. Officers reportedly tried to negotiate with Ross, hoping that one or both children were still alive.
The father changed his story repeatedly, Sgt. Jonathan Howard said, initially claiming the children were alive and threatening to take action if police didn’t leave. Eventually, he admitted to taking their lives.
“Throughout the negotiations, he made comments that he had k*lled the children. He made some notifications to some family members that he had k*lled the children,” Howard said.
Hours before the crime, Ross posted a video singing with his son and sending holiday greetings
Iris’ sister, Mary Wogas, told ABC15 News that she received two messages from Ross confessing to the crime, the first saying, “I just k*lled Iris and the kids,” and the second one adding, ”with a [firearm].”
“I knew that man was very unstable. I knew he had a very, very dark side. I didn’t know it was this dark,” Wogas said.
Authorities first confirmed that 9-month-old Anora was lifeless after the Special Assignments Unit deployed a robot into the residence.
At around 7.30pm, police cut the power and entered the apartment while Ross opened fire on the officers, injuring one of them.
After detaining him, officers found the body of the other child, 11-year-old Nigel, in another room.
Ross, also known as Milan, became famous for his weight-loss transformation in his 20s after adopting a vegan lifestyle. He went on to become a chef and began writing cookbooks and recipes focused on his plant-based diet.
The 53-year-old later appeared alongside celebrities like James Cameron and Samuel L. Jackson in a feature-length documentary on veganism.
After the initial attack on his wife, Ross barricaded himself inside his apartment with their two children
Prosecutors alleged that Ross had premeditated the crime to get revenge on his wife. They pointed to his internet searches in the days before the incident, which included weapons, battery acid, sulfuric acid, skin-melting acid, silencers, and cases of families who were assassinated on Christmas Day.
His defense attorney, Carrie Gallagher, described the incident as a “tragedy” but insisted the attacks were not planned, saying, “There is a difference between rumination and premeditation.”
Gallagher added that Ross’s mental health deteriorated in 2017 and he began developing “obsessive” thoughts at night connected to his internet searches, but argued that this does not prove he planned to commit the crime.
The attorney said that, on Christmas Day 2017, Ross woke up in a state of deep depression and messaged Iris about their separation after consuming a bottle of whisky.
“During the same period of time that Milan was researching online, he was also engaging in future-oriented activities, and he was generally planning for the future,” Gallagher said.
Ross gained fame for his weight-loss transformation and vegan lifestyle, later appearing in documentaries
According to the attorney, these plans included adopting a dog, meeting up with friends after the holidays, and proposing to his girlfriend days before the attack.
Family and friends of the victims told ABC15 that Ross began acting differently and making subtle threats after his separation from Iris.
“The man was off his rocker. One minute he was yelling at her, calling her a ‘wh*re’, and the next minute wanting to tell her he loved her and wanted them to be a family unit,” said Wogas.
He allegedly warned Iris, an administrator at the St. Joseph’s Outpatient Surgery Center, that he was working with a voodoo priest in New Orleans “to put a hex on her.”
A GoFundMe page launched at the time of the crime described Iris as a “loving, gentle mother who adored her children.”
The chef was convicted on all counts and now faces the possibility of capital punishment. His sentencing is scheduled for January 9, 2026.
Many people remember hearing about the brutal crime in 2017
