An Indianapolis teenager whose father had just yelled at him for leaving the house without permission aimed a gun at his family, killing five relatives, according to authorities and reports on Monday.
“He shot them!” Cried the 17-year-old suspect’s sister in the middle of the 3:45 am blood bath on Sunday morning, according to a police report obtained by the local Fox 59 branch.
The dead were identified as Kezzie Childs, 42, Raymond Childs Jr., 42, his 18 year old son Elijah, his 13 year old daughter Rita, 19 year old Kiara Hawkins and his unborn baby, “Baby Boy Hawkins” , according to the police and the local WRTV station.
The alleged killer, who was not identified by the authorities because of his age, was arrested on Monday after police tracked him down to the suburb of Plainfield, Indiana, officials said.
His younger brother was seriously injured in the bloodshed – but he lived to tell the authorities what happened, according to the police report quoted by Fox.
The boy said his alleged killer brother was furious at being scolded by his father for running away without permission.
The younger brother said he was with his parents downstairs when they heard the first shots upstairs and his sister screamed, Fox said.
The sound of more bullets followed – then the killer “came down the stairs with a draco gun, a pistol that fires rifle shots, and started shooting,” his brother reportedly told police.
The younger brother fled through the door, only for his brother to chase him, shooting him, Fox said.
The suspect faces charges of manslaughter with a firearm and attempted murder.
His fatal victims were found riddled with gunshot wounds in the house and declared dead on the spot, officials said.
“Yesterday, we promised swift justice for this heinous act. Today, we keep that promise, ”said Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Chief Randal Taylor in a tweet on Monday.
“While removing the alleged perpetrator of yesterday’s mass murder from our neighborhoods does not bring back the meaningless lost lives, hopefully, it will bring us one step closer to healing as a community. ”
The crime left neighbors sad and in search of answers.
“Taking out an entire family like that … I just don’t understand,” Vicki Pinkston told WTHR.
Pinkston, who lives across the street from the crime scene, said she recently left some baby items for the future mother.
“I had just given them some things from my great-grandchild when he was born, but he is bigger now. The baby would be born next month, ”said Pinkston, according to the season.
Pinkston said the family was “so sweet.
“Oh, Sir, they say, ‘Hi, Miss, Vicki’ all the time,” she told Fox.
The mass murder comes as Indianapolis passes the most violent year on record.
Indiana’s largest city recorded 245 homicides in 2020, according to the Indianapolis Star.