INDIANAPOLIS — IMPD is investigating after officers shot and killed a man who allegedly shot a woman near Castleton in Indianapolis Tuesday afternoon.
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Northwest District officers responded to multiple reports of shots fired and a person shot in the 9000 block of Wesleyan Road just after 3 p.m. Multiple callers said the suspect fired shots outside of a business.
Upon arrival, officers located an adult female victim suffering from a gunshot injury. The victim was transported to a local hospital in stable condition.
IMPD believes the suspect and the woman knew each other and the shooting was a result of a domestic issue between the two.
A second adult victim, believed to be a good samaritan, received bite wounds and other injuries as he tried to intervene in the incident. He was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
While on scene, officers located a possible suspect vehicle leaving the area. The officers attempted to stop the vehicle, a maroon Dodge Ram pickup truck, but the driver refused to stop and a pursuit began.
The vehicle pursuit lasted for several miles and ended in the 8400 block of Maple Leaf Lane on the city's northeast side near Castleton.
The driver, identified Wednesday as 45-year-old Elijah Radford, exited the truck and forced entry into an apartment in the area. Detectives believe he knew the owner of the apartment and had been staying there.
During further investigation, detectives learned the suspect put the gun to the victim's head and pulled the trigger multiple times, but it did not fire. The last time he pulled the trigger, the magazine fell out. This occurred at the first scene in the 9000 block of Wesleyan Road.
Officers followed into the apartment and saw the suspect had a female inside the residence at knife point, IMPD says.
According to IMPD, officers gave multiple commands to drop the knife. At some point after that, there was an officer-involved shooting.
One officer from IMPD and one officer from the Lawrence Police Department fired their weapons.
The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene.
The female victim who was held at knifepoint was treated on scene and released. No officers were injured, police say.
Detectives located a rifle at the original scene and a knife at the apartment.
The officers were equipped with body-worn cameras. At least one officer had his body-worn camera activated at the time of the incident.
The IMPD Critical Incident Response Team responded to the scene to conduct the criminal investigation.
A separate administrative investigation is being conducted by IMPD Internal Affairs. The Lawrence Police Department will also conduct a separate administrative investigation done by LPD Internal Affairs.
The IMPD officer and the LPD officer who fired their gun have been placed on administrative leave as is standard procedure in an officer-involved shooting investigation.
The civilian-majority Use of Force Review Board will conduct a mandatory hearing for any attempted use of deadly force against a person. This occurs after the conclusion of the criminal process.
