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    • Indianapolis teens arrested in deadly attempted robbery after gun found
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    Indianapolis teens arrested in deadly attempted robbery after gun found

    Online Niel Posted on

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    Jerry Thompson Jr., 38, and his girlfriend were returning home from the store when they noticed two teenagers sitting on the steps by Thompson’s apartment door.

    The couple were unfazed by the teenagers, waving to them as they made their way to Thompson’s apartment in 7600 block of Beverly Hills Drive on the evening of September 15, 2024.

    But when Thompson began handing over the keys to his apartment, the teenagers ran at the couple, gun in hand, according to court documents.

    One of the teenagers pointed a gun at Thompson’s head as they demanded he open the door. After he refused, Thompson was shot at least four times, with two bullets striking his cheek and head before the teenagers fled the apartment complex.

    Thompson fell to the ground. His girlfriend ran screaming for help before returning to Thompson to offer help.

    The neighbors called Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, but by the time police arrived on the scene, Thompson was dead.

    On October 17, 2024, both teenagers were arrested and preliminarily charged with murder. One of the teenagers is charged as a juvenile, while the other, 16-year-old Muhammadou Ali, is charged as an adult.

    Marion County prosecutors charged Ali with murder and aggravated robbery on Oct. 22, 2024.

    Police arrest two teenagers in connection with murder

    A neighbor who saw the teenagers running from the apartment described them to police at the scene, according to court documents.

    Shortly after the shooting, an officer traveling along New Augusta Road and 79th Street observed the teenagers walking toward Eastbrook Elementary and tried to stop them while driving the marked police car before the teenagers tried to run away.

    According to court documents, the officer began following them and caught Ali behind Eastbrook Elementary School.

    The other teenager avoided police by running down a wooded path near the edge of the school, hiding in a neighborhood near the school but outside the police search area.

    At one point, while evading police, the teenager dropped his Marvel-themed backpack, which housed a loaded Sig Sauer P365 9mm. Officers recovered the backpack on September 16, 2024, when they searched the wooded area with Pike Township School Police. In the backpack, police found homework with the teenager’s name written on it.

    As police searched the area, an Uber driver pulled into the school parking lot and told police they were there to pick up the teenager.

    Officers then used a drone to locate the teenager in a neighborhood a few blocks away.

    When interviewing the teens, Ali explained to police that he did not know the other teen, but when they interviewed the other teen, police learned that Ali had the teen’s cell phone. Footage captured by a surveillance camera in the area showed the two teenagers running together towards the primary school.

    On October 12, 2024, police completed an examination of the firearm casing and cartridge found at the crime scene. Police determined the rounds were fired from the Sig Sauer Model P365 9mm recovered in the teenager’s backpack.

    On October 17, 2024, police arrested Ali and the other teenager, taking them both to the juvenile detention center.

    Contact IndyStar reporter Noe Padilla at [email protected] or follow X @1NoePadilla.

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