LAWRENCE, Ind. — The prosecutor says witnesses coming forward and a cellphone left at the murder scene helped investigators find the man who they believe killed 19-year-old Londyn Coleman, 19-year-old Aaliyah Wortman and 27-year-old Spencer Lawson outside a Lawrence apartment complex.
Malik Shaw, 24, of Indianapolis, is charged with three counts of murder. He is being held without bond after his initial court appearance Thursday.
Court records say that a maintenance worker at the apartments tried to stop the suspects. The three victims were found shot and killed near a car in a parking lot at the Jamestowne Apartment Community near 42nd Street and North Post Road on April 12 around 7:15 p.m.
The maintenance worker told police he was awakened by the shooting, grabbed his gun and chased two suspects through a hole in the fence of the complex and into the neighborhood to the north. The maintenance worker said he fired at least four shots at the suspects. He thought he hit one of the suspects.
Victims in Lawrence triple deadly shooting
"He's drawn to the scene because he hears and sees what is going on,” Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said. “Then, in an effort to defend some of the people that are involved, he actually becomes involved in the shooting. But not only is he involved in the shooting, he also provides really helpful identification information."
The suspects got away.
Shaw allegedly wound up a block north outside of a sports bar at 46th Street and Post Road. Court records say a man was sitting in his car behind the Sports Page Lounge when Shaw approached him, looking stressed and breathing hard. Shaw allegedly offered him two $100 bills to give him a ride home. The man did and dropped him off around 25th Street and Post Road.
Court records say police recovered a cellphone in the suspect’s car left at the murder scene that led them to Shaw's Instagram account. Investigators found social media images that matched Shaw in surveillance video from the area where the suspects ran off.
"It's really a combination of the new technology we've been able to utilize,” Mears said. “Cellphones, but then also we wouldn't be here without people from the community coming forward with information."
Police tracked Shaw to a house on Carla Court, near where he was dropped off. He was arrested Monday, April 15.
Mears says police believe they know the name of the second suspect, but he's not in custody. Shaw made his initial court appearance Thursday morning and told the judge he plans to hire an attorney. He'll appear in court again April 24.