Man Charged with Attempted Murder After IMPD Shooting

INDIANAPOLIS — A man has been charged with attempted murder and several other felony charges for his alleged role in a shooting that left an Indianapolis metro police officer injured earlier this month.

On Friday, the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office announced that Victor Garcia-Lopez has been formally charged after he was arrested in connection with a May 8 shootout with police. He faces the following charges:

Two counts of Attempted Murder (Level 1 Felony)
Burglary with a Deadly Weapon (Level 2 Felony)
Criminal Confinement (Level 3 Felony)
Theft (Level 5 Felony)
Two counts of Intimidation (Level 5 Felony)
Resisting Law Enforcement (Level 5 Felony)
Strangulation (Level 6 Felony)
Battery Resulting in Bodily Injury (Class A Misdemanor)

According to previous reports, officers were called to the 6300 block of North Washington Boulevard around 10:15 p.m. after receiving calls indicating that a person was possibly killed inside a home and that the suspect was still on the scene.

Court documents indicate that the caller believed that Garcia-Lopez had killed her landlord during a dispute and claimed that he was intoxicated and experiencing a “psychotic break.”

When police arrived, they determined that nobody had actually been killed. Instead, the disturbance involved Garcia-Lopez, the caller and another man.

As officers attempted to uncover what had happened, Garcia-Lopez reportedly pulled away and “turned hostile,” court documents said. Officers attempted to speak with Gracia-Lopez, who allegedly walked away from officers and told them to “shoot him in the back.”

As he was turning away, police said he retrieved a handgun from his waistband and fired the weapon at least eight times. One of the officers suffered a gunshot wound to his right arm, while three other bullets struck the windows of the porch on the main house. Another bullet reportedly struck a white Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Police then returned fire, with Garcia-Lopez sustaining a gunshot injury. The suspect and the injured officer were then transported to Eskenazi Hospital for medical treatment.

Domestic disturbance preceded shooting

Court documents revealed that an argument involving Garcia-Lopez and a woman took place at the cottage house before police were called. The suspect is alleged to have grabbed the woman by her neck and thrown her, affecting her ability to breathe.

The woman told police that she told the suspect to leave as she locked the door behind him. Garcia-Lopez then went to the main house, where the other man who was visiting with the suspect and the woman was staying.

A short time later, Garcia-Lopez returned to the cottage house and told her that the man was “not getting up”, leading her to suspect that he had hurt or killed the man. The woman said Garcia-Lopez then grabbed her handgun from a gun box on her nightstand and walked out of the house.

When she asked for her gun back, he allegedly began striking her with the gun box. The woman recalled finally managing to lock Garcia-Lopez outside so she could call 911. She said he then broke a window and reentered the residence. Fearing for her safety, she fled to a bathroom and hid.

At this time, the other man walked into the cottage house. Garcia-Lopez then allegedly threatened to kill all three of them before police arrived a few minutes later.

Following the encounter, police met and spoke with the man, who recalled Garcia-Lopez becoming “increasingly aggressive” as the three were hanging out and having dinner and drinks. The altercation culminated with Gracia-Lopez allegedly grabbing the man from behind and choking him until he went unconscious, court documents said.

When the man woke up, he recalled seeing that his phone had been taken. Police later determined that Garcia-Lopez had allegedly taken the victim’s cell phone.

The man told police that he entered the guest house and discovered Garcia-Lopez on top of the woman in the shower, where she was pinned down and allegedly being struck by the suspect with a closed fist.

When the man attempted to break up the assault, Garcia-Lopez allegedly tackled him and put a gun to his head while threatening him.

Next steps

IMPD’s critical incident response team is leading the criminal investigation of the incident. The agency’s internal affairs unit will conduct an administrative review of the shooting, as is the protocol for any police shooting.

Once the criminal investigation of the shooting has concluded, a civilian-majority use-of-force review board will hold a hearing on the incident. On May 9, IMPD confirmed the officer was released from the hospital.

As of May 11, Garcia-Lopez remains hospitalized and was last reported to be in critical but stable condition. Online court records indicate that Garcia-Lopez is scheduled to appear in Marion Superior Court 29 on May 20 for his initial hearing in the case.