Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Man gets 240 years in prison for 2020 slayings of 4 people

A man convicted of four counts of murder and other charges in the fatal Indianapolis shootings of three young men and one young woman has been sentenced to 240 years in prison

Via AP news wire
Friday 28 April 2023 15:53 EDT
Indianapolis Shootings
Indianapolis Shootings

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A man convicted of four counts of murder and other charges in the fatal Indianapolis shootings of three young men and a young woman was sentenced Friday to 240 years in prison.

Lasean Watkins also was found guilty in March of felony murder and robbery resulting in serious bodily injury in the February 2020 shooting deaths of three men — Marcel Wills, 20; Braxton Ford, 21; and Jalen Roberts, 19 — and a woman, Kimari Hunt, 21, according to a news release. The victims’ bodies were found in a ransacked Indianapolis apartment.

"In 2020, we were rocked by this senseless act," Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said in the news release.

Co-defendants Cameron Banks and Desmond Banks, convicted last month with Watkins, each were sentenced to 220 years in prison, while a fourth suspect, Rodrience Anderson, pleaded guilty last October to four counts of robbery resulting in serious bodily injury while agreeing to cooperate with the prosecution. He was sentenced to 35 years with five years suspended.

WXIN-TV has reported that Cameron Banks and Desmond Banks are brothers and that, alongside Watkins and Anderson, they ransacked the apartment and cleaned out a safe after more than 50 rounds were fired during the killings.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in