Indianapolis police shoot accused kidnapper after victim drives him to officers

(This story was updated to add more information)

A man who allegedly jumped into a woman's vehicle and held her at gunpoint is in critical but stable condition after being shot by Indianapolis police on Sunday.

The shooting is the 12th by an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer this year. The officer who fired his gun, was identified by the department as 15-year veteran, Joseph Beasley. He was placed on administrative leave, per department policy.

Beasley is the same officer who fired his weapon while investigating gunshots downtown back in June. Neither the suspect nor Beasley were injured in that shooting. He was wearing a body camera at the time but it did not activate during the investigation. Beasley was also put on leave then, per standard procedure.

No one was hurt: Indianapolis officer fires weapon during gunfire investigation downtown

Kendale Adams, deputy chief of criminal investigations, said the incident occurred around 3:30 p.m. in the 1000 block of North Kealing Avenue between 10th and 11th streets.

According to preliminary information, IMPD East officers were conducting an unrelated theft investigation when a vehicle not involved with that investigation suddenly stopped near them.

Adams, in a briefing, said the woman exited the car and told officers she was being held at gunpoint by a man inside. He said the man and the woman did not know each other. "She was totally surprised by this individual who jumped in her car and threatened her with a gun," he said.

An officer at the scene loudly told the man to put his hands up, but the man pointed the handgun in the direction of nearby officers and at least one uninvolved citizen, Adams said. Beasley fired his gun, striking the man at least once, before using a taser in an attempt to subdue him. Adams said the man was ordered to drop the gun.

"The suspect was still holding the firearm," he said. "Officers then took the firearm out of the suspect's hand and pulled the suspect out of the car."

The man received first aid at the scene, according to police. He was transported to Eskenazi Hospital in critical condition. The man was still critical late Sunday, but he was stable, Adams said.

The woman later told officers she was driving north on North Kealing Avenue and saw officers near the intersection of East 11th Street. "She told detectives the suspect jumped into the vehicle a few blocks from this incident and then forced her to drive," said Adams. "She then drove to the location where she recalled seeing the officers, stopped, and alerted the officers to the situation."

Adams said the man had threatened the victim with a handgun. Police say the victim was shaken after the ordeal. Victim's Assistance will be available for her.

"Today is really a sad day," he said. "We're very fortunate that our officers were not seriously injured or that the suspect was more seriously injured and the victim was not injured."

Adams said officers did activate body cameras during the incident, which resulted in the closure of North Kealing Avenue from 10th to 13th streets while IMPD detectives investigated and collected evidence. The Marion County Prosecutor's Office also is being consulted as the man could face charges later.

"Detectives are confident there is no ongoing threat to the community," Adams said, adding "there is no suspect outstanding."

Neighbors mostly stayed inside while police investigated. Yellow police tape blocked the intersection at 11th Street. Some people peeked through windows. The few who did venture out observed a few minutes before going back inside. Several residents, who did not want to be named, said they heard two gunshots during the 3 o'clock hour but they did not have more information.

As of now, IMPD Internal Affairs is investigating the officer-involved shooting. Adams said the Civilian Use of Force Review Board also will conduct a hearing after the conclusion of the criminal process.

The shooting comes at a time when IMPD is seeking solutions to reduce the number of officer-involved shootings in Indianapolis after seeing a spike last year. In April, the department announced that the U.S. Department of Justice and the National Policing Institute would review shootings by Indianapolis police officers. There were 17 shootings that year. IMPD Chief Chris Bailey, though, said the North Kealing Avenue incident is "pretty cut and dry."

"Our officers were here on a thief report and violence came to them," Bailey said. "They weren't making a traffic stop. They weren't serving a search warrant. They were here trying to help another community member." Bailey said the department has been transparent about officer-involved shootings and a review is ongoing.

"If anybody here, or out watching, has a solution to prevent what happened here today, I'm all ears," he said. "There's no way in my mind this could have been prevented other than the person not forcefully taking and kidnapping a woman, forcing her to drive around while a gun was pointed to her head."

As of Oct. 30, the man shot remains in the hospital.IMPD has arrested and preliminarily charged him with carjacking, pointing a firearm and kidnapping. Final charges will be determined by the Marion County Prosecutors Office. A second firearm was located in the man's backpack, which was located in the victim’s car.

Additionally, IMPD detectives learned during the investigation that a 911 call was made by the suspect’s family notifying police the suspect was suffering from a mental emotional issue, was off his medication and was armed with a firearm. The information was not dispatched prior to the officer engaging with the suspect. Officers did not have this information or knowledge of the 911 call prior to the critical incident.

Previous police-involved shootings in Indianapolis in 2024

Sept. 11: Officers were involved in a shooting while responding to a hostage situation on the north side of Indianapolis. No police officers were injured, and the man shot by police was reported to be in stable condition at a local hospital.

Aug. 23: What started as a search warrant for narcotics, ultimately ended in Kentrail Small, 40, being shot and killed. At about 10:30 a.m. SWAT officers were attempting to serve a search warrant at the Park Terrace Motel, 9025 Pendleton Pike, in Lawrence. SWAT forced their way into the room and a struggle ensued as police attempted to handcuff Small. Police said Small got away and grabbed a Draco firearm, at which point officers fatally shot him.

July 2: Police responding to a call about a person shot encountered Richard Dale Bures, 86, who they say pointed a weapon at them just after 11:30 a.m. in the 5100 block of West Vermont Street, just off North Lynhurst Drive. Bures pointed the firearm at officers multiple times, and two officers fired their weapons. Detectives located a revolver but no evidence of another person shot. They also found a note stating the man wanted to commit suicide, police said. Bures survived the encounter and was criminally charged and his case remains pending.

June 25: Elijah Hakiem Radford, 45, was suspected of shooting a woman before leading police on a multi-mile chase that culminated in Castleton. Body camera footage shows him entering an apartment and holding a knife next to a screaming woman moments before he was fatally shot.

June 1: An officer fired their weapon while investigating gunshots downtown about 3:20 a.m. Neither the suspect nor the officer were injured.

May 28: Jerrett Dwain Gray Jr., 20, was a suspect in an armed carjacking when he was fatally shot while trying to flee police in the Cavalier Court apartment complex. Two firearms were found where Gray was taken into custody. One firearm carried a machine gun conversion device, commonly called a Glock Switch.

May 15: Kelvin Andrew Chandler, 26, who was accused of shooting his roommate, was fatally shot in an "exchange of gunfire" with an officer in the 6500 block of Apollo Way. His roommate survived.

May 2: Lemar Brandon Qualls, 35, was shot and killed after officers were called about a person armed and pointing a weapon at people in the 3900 block of Broadway Street, near 38th Street and North College Avenue. Witnesses said Qualls pointed the weapon at officers, according to police.

March 31: Luis Duran-Ruano, 31, was killed after a SWAT standoff on Winston Avenue that started with a call about a man firing shots into the air near West 33rd Street and Georgetown Road.

March 24: Dominique Lamonte Durham Sr., 37, was fatally shot March 24 in an exchange of gunfire with off-duty officers working security at a nightclub on East Washington Street.

Jan. 24: Raphael Dekemper, 41, was shot and killed in a shootout with officers on Brookside Parkway North Drive.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indianapolis police shoot accused kidnapper after woman drives him to officers