BARGERSVILLE, Ind. — Bargersville police say they are hoping to identify more than one person who left the scene of a Christmas Eve triple shooting as they continue asking for a potential witness to come forward.
“This person may have been witness to the entire incident, and we’d really love it if he’d come forward and talk to us,” said Bargersville Police Public Information Officer Jeremy Roll.
The shooting happened around 5 a.m. on Christmas Eve in the parking lot of the Circle K gas station near the intersection of State Road 37 and State Road 144.
Gunfire near a gas pump killed 18-year-old Ethan Bell and a 17-year-old whose name has not been released. Another 18-year-old was also injured in the shooting.
Early in the investigation, Bargersville police identified a person of interest in the case. That person has since been located and interviewed by detectives.
“He didn’t shed any light to our story or to the story of what happened at that particular time at the Circle K,” Roll said.
Police are not able to release information about what the person told them about the incident or other details of evidence gathered so far.
While the young man is still considered a person of interest in the case, Johnson County Prosecutor Joe Villanueva says evidence suggests there could have been more than one person involved.
“There has been some evidence to show that there could have been additional people in that car that left the scene,” Villanueva said. “Those are identities we are trying to ascertain.
“Right now, we don’t know the type or level of involvement. But the first step would be to find who they are and try to determine what level, if any, involvement they had in the incident.”
That’s why investigators are asking for the possible witness to contact them. Surveillance cameras at the Circle K show what appears to be a man wearing a dark hoodie and a mask walking in and out of the gas station. Roll says police believe the man was at the gas station at the exact time of the shooting and might be able to describe the individuals detectives are searching for.
“This witness could potentially help us bring closure to the families of the deceased,” Roll said.
Villanueva emphasized that the investigation remains very active, and any information the witness can provide could potentially go a long way toward helping to solve the case.
“No one wants to see these kinds of things happen, and we want to make sure we can hold someone accountable for the actions that they took,” he said. “And I think all citizens should want to have that happen, regardless of what community you’re in.”
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the Bargersville Police Department at 317-736-5155 or Crime Stoppers at 317-262-TIPS (8477)
