Juveniles Held In Cromwell Murder
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
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Fifteen-year-old Colt Lundy, 12-year-old Paul Gingerich and 12-year-old Chase Williams, allegedly were involved in the murder of Phillip A. Danner, 49, of 9219 E. Doswell Boulevard, Cromwell Tuesday night.
Danner was Lundy's stepfather. Danner's wife, Robin, was vacationing in Florida with friends when the shooting occurred.
Lundy is a freshman at Wawasee High School, Syracuse, while Gingerich and Williams are sixth-graders at Wawasee Middle School.
Kosciusko County Police have not yet determined a motive for the killing.
The juveniles were detained in Peru, Ill., early Wednesday morning after they tried to exchange a large amount of change for bills at a Wal-Mart Store. An employee of the store became suspicious after seeing the three youngsters alone in the store at 3 a.m.
When police responded to the call from the store at approximatley 3:40 a.m., one of the juveniles reportedly told the officer about the shooting.
According to Kosciusko County Sheriff Rocky Goshert, Danner was walking from the kitchen of the residence to the living room area when Lundy and one of the 12-year-old boys allegedly shot him. Goshert said the weapons used were a .38 caliber revolver and a Glock.
Goshert said he believed Danner was caught off guard by the shooting.
"He probably had no idea that this was even a remote possibility," Goshert said.
Danner allegedly suffered four gunshot wounds, two in the torso, one to the left wrist and one just above the right eye socket. His body was found in the kitchen of the home by officers from the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department early Wednesday morning. Police believe Danner was shot sometime between 6:30 and 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Goshert also said while Lundy and one of the 12-year-olds were allegedly inside the home firing the weapons, the other boy was outside the home.
The boys left the home in the Lundy's mother's Dodge Neon and traveled to Illinois, where they were detained by LaSalle County Police after an employee of the Wal-Mart, located just off I-80, reported a suspicious vehicle and some suspicious juveniles in the store.
According to Peru (Ill.) Police Chief Doug Bernabei, officers arrived at the store and found the suspect vehicle unoccupied in the parking lot. The three juveniles were found inside the store, and upon further investigation, detectives were contacted.
After talking with the juveniles, the Illinois detectives contacted the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department for a welfare check on Danner.
Authorities from the Illinois department currently are gathering their reports and have sent all their information to the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department and Prosecutor's Office.
LaSalle County officials found one of the guns believed to be used in the murder in plain sight in the vehicle. Kosciusko County Police found a second gun, also believed to have been used in the crime, when they executed a search warrant on the car.
The juveniles were flown from Peru, Ill., to Warsaw Wednesday, and were detained in Pierceton Woods Academy overnight. Because the boys were underage, they were not booked into the Kosciusko County Jail.
There will be an initial hearing at 1:30 p.m. today in Kosciusko Juvenile Court with Judge Duane Huffer presiding.
Since it's a juvenile trial it is not open to the public.
If the boys are waived to adult court, they will face charges in Kosciusko Circuit Court with Judge Rex Reed presiding.
Goshert said the judge will decide where the boys are housed until they go to trial. If the boys are waived to adult court, they legally could be housed in the jail, but Goshert said because of their ages, the boys probably would be sent to a secure juvenile facility.[[In-content Ad]]
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Fifteen-year-old Colt Lundy, 12-year-old Paul Gingerich and 12-year-old Chase Williams, allegedly were involved in the murder of Phillip A. Danner, 49, of 9219 E. Doswell Boulevard, Cromwell Tuesday night.
Danner was Lundy's stepfather. Danner's wife, Robin, was vacationing in Florida with friends when the shooting occurred.
Lundy is a freshman at Wawasee High School, Syracuse, while Gingerich and Williams are sixth-graders at Wawasee Middle School.
Kosciusko County Police have not yet determined a motive for the killing.
The juveniles were detained in Peru, Ill., early Wednesday morning after they tried to exchange a large amount of change for bills at a Wal-Mart Store. An employee of the store became suspicious after seeing the three youngsters alone in the store at 3 a.m.
When police responded to the call from the store at approximatley 3:40 a.m., one of the juveniles reportedly told the officer about the shooting.
According to Kosciusko County Sheriff Rocky Goshert, Danner was walking from the kitchen of the residence to the living room area when Lundy and one of the 12-year-old boys allegedly shot him. Goshert said the weapons used were a .38 caliber revolver and a Glock.
Goshert said he believed Danner was caught off guard by the shooting.
"He probably had no idea that this was even a remote possibility," Goshert said.
Danner allegedly suffered four gunshot wounds, two in the torso, one to the left wrist and one just above the right eye socket. His body was found in the kitchen of the home by officers from the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department early Wednesday morning. Police believe Danner was shot sometime between 6:30 and 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Goshert also said while Lundy and one of the 12-year-olds were allegedly inside the home firing the weapons, the other boy was outside the home.
The boys left the home in the Lundy's mother's Dodge Neon and traveled to Illinois, where they were detained by LaSalle County Police after an employee of the Wal-Mart, located just off I-80, reported a suspicious vehicle and some suspicious juveniles in the store.
According to Peru (Ill.) Police Chief Doug Bernabei, officers arrived at the store and found the suspect vehicle unoccupied in the parking lot. The three juveniles were found inside the store, and upon further investigation, detectives were contacted.
After talking with the juveniles, the Illinois detectives contacted the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department for a welfare check on Danner.
Authorities from the Illinois department currently are gathering their reports and have sent all their information to the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department and Prosecutor's Office.
LaSalle County officials found one of the guns believed to be used in the murder in plain sight in the vehicle. Kosciusko County Police found a second gun, also believed to have been used in the crime, when they executed a search warrant on the car.
The juveniles were flown from Peru, Ill., to Warsaw Wednesday, and were detained in Pierceton Woods Academy overnight. Because the boys were underage, they were not booked into the Kosciusko County Jail.
There will be an initial hearing at 1:30 p.m. today in Kosciusko Juvenile Court with Judge Duane Huffer presiding.
Since it's a juvenile trial it is not open to the public.
If the boys are waived to adult court, they will face charges in Kosciusko Circuit Court with Judge Rex Reed presiding.
Goshert said the judge will decide where the boys are housed until they go to trial. If the boys are waived to adult court, they legally could be housed in the jail, but Goshert said because of their ages, the boys probably would be sent to a secure juvenile facility.[[In-content Ad]]
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