INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis man is accused of stabbing his own brother to death.
Just after 10 o’clock Sunday morning, a woman called 911 and reported her brother had been stabbed inside his own home on Whistler Drive.
The 30-year-old victim, Juan Parada, died in the hospital a short time later.
As police began to investigate a motive, they quickly identified the victim’s brother, 24-year-old Enrique Hernandez, as a possible suspect.
According to court records, the suspect lived in the home with several family members including the victim.
After the stabbing Hernandez left the family home for four days before returning on Thursday.
That’s when the family called police back to the scene and officers arrested the accused killer walking in the neighborhood.
Once in custody Hernandez allegedly admitted he got mad at his brother and walked to a nearby Meijer store where he bought a large kitchen knife.
The affidavit claims Hernandez told police he returned home and stabbed his brother three or four times as soon as the victim opened the front door.
“One way of dealing with conflict is violence. What we want is alternatives to violence that we need to teach individuals,” said Dountonia Batts with the Peace Learning Center.
The Peace Learning Center serves as an educational resource that offers community outreach and education.
Dountonia doesn’t know the family in this case, but she believes teaching families how to manage emotions and de-escalate family conflict is a key to public safety because police can’t stop that kind of violence alone.
“Family violence really does come down to how you manage your emotions,” said Batts. “We’ve got to understand how to resolve conflicts peacefully and be the change that we want to see in the community.”
For his part, Hernandez did not explain why he was mad at his brother. The family told police the suspect had a drug problem and the brothers would sometimes argue with each other.
The suspect is being held without bond pending the filing of formal charges.
Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Christopher Edwards at the IMPD Homicide Office at (317) 327-3475 or e-mail him at Christopher.Edwards@indy.gov.
People can also call Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at (317) 262-8477 to remain anonymous.
