Source: Owner Of Car Probed In Teller Shooting Arrested

INDIANAPOLIS -- The owner of a car that police believe transported whoever shot a pregnant bank teller this week was arrested Thursday on a preliminary charge of false informing, a source with knowledge of the case told 6News' Jack Rinehart.

Two public information officers with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department refuted the source's information, saying the car owner was being questioned but hadn't been arrested.

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Slideshow: Police Seek Shooter

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But Rinehart's source said the gold Dodge Intrepid's owner was arrested after reporting the car stolen Thursday afternoon. The owner's report came after police announced they found the car abandoned in a parking lot in the 5600 block of Post Road.

Police are suspicious about why the owner reported it missing after it was recovered, the source said. Authorities had said earlier they were looking for the in connection with Tuesday morning's robbery and shooting at Huntington National Bank, 2030 N. Post Road.

Authorities told the news media early Thursday afternoon they found the car hours earlier. A detective said the vehicle (pictured) smelled as if a dye pack -- an antitheft device that banks keep with their money -- had exploded in or near the vehicle.

Police had said they believed whoever robbed the bank picked up a dye pack as he grabbed money from the bank's drawers.

The vehicle was found a day after police arrested four people accused of being linked to the robber. Police said they're still trying to find the person they believe robbed the bank and shot teller Katherin Shuffield, 30, of Franklin, in the lower abdomen.

Shuffield, who is five months pregnant with twins, was in critical condition at a hospital Wednesday, according to her husband. Earlier, police said the bullet didn't hit the unborn children and that the fetuses were not in immediate jeopardy.

Police: Arrestee Gave Us Info On Shooter

Police said one of Wednesday's four arrestees gave investigators information about a man he said committed the robbery and shooting.

Arrested Wednesday were Shad James, 25, Joseph Wilburn, 22, Stevan Peterson, 21, and Tyrone Daniels, 33. They were being held on preliminary charges of conspiracy to commit robbery.

According to a police report, James admitted having knowledge about the robbery, helped police identify the other people who were arrested, and identified the shooter as someone named "Milbrook."

According to the report, James told police that the robbery was planned a couple of days in advance, and that on the morning of the robbery, he, Wilburn and "Milbrook" were in a gold Dodge Intrepid.

James, according to police, said Peterson was in a blue Honda Pilot, the other vehicle police say was involved in the case.

James told police he was let out of the Intrepid before the robbery after he expressed concern about what was about to happen, according to the report.

Police said James told them that he returned to a duplex in the 600 block of Keystone Avenue -- a home where police found at least two of Wednesday's arrestees -- shortly after the robbery and heard Milbrook, Peterson and Wilburn discuss what had happened.

During Wednesday's raid on the duplex, officers found cocaine, a handgun, an assault rifle and unspecified evidence investigators believe was connected to the case, according to police.

On Thursday, about 150 officers were looking for the Honda Pilot and the man who shot Shuffield.

"We believe (the shooter) is in town," Indianapolis police Maj. Lincoln Plowman said Thursday.

Plowman said police are prepared to stop any Honda Pilot they see in Indianapolis.

"We're going to stop them, we're going to talk to them, we're going to write their driver's license information down and their address and get their plate number," Plowman said. "And if we're in front of a residence, we're going to write that down for future reference."

Robbery Details

Police said the gunman entered the bank at about 9:30 a.m. Tuesday while one customer and three employees were inside. Though no one resisted, the gunman went over the teller counter and shot Shuffield, police said.

After Shuffield was shot, witnesses told police, the robber grabbed cash from some drawers and fired a bullet at an empty chair before exiting the bank. A block to the west, at least one person saw him enter the passenger side of a gold, late-model Dodge Intrepid with dull, worn paint, police said.

The Intrepid sped away and a new, bright blue Honda Pilot SUV followed, the witness said, prompting police to wonder whether the SUV's occupants were linked to the robber. Information about how much money the robber took wasn't available.

Witnesses described the shooter as black, 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighing about 215 pounds. He was wearing a blue stocking cap, a dark face covering, a gray jacket, blue jeans and dark shoes with light-colored heels, witnesses told police. Police said he also wore sunglasses and teal surgical gloves and was carrying a 9 mm gun.

Though the gunman's face was covered, authorities developed a sketch of him based on witness descriptions and released it Tuesday night. Police also released pictures of two vehicles similar to the ones they're seeking in connection with the incident.

At a news conference late Wednesday afternoon, some local ministers called on the shooter to surrender to one of them, arguing that the process of them handing the shooter to police might be smoother for him than police finding him.

Police endorsed the ministers' offer. They also said anyone with information about the shooting should call Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at 317-262-8477.

A benefit fund for Shuffield was established. Donations can be made to:

Katherin Shuffield Benefit Fund
c/o Huntington Bank, Attn: Main Office Branch
45 N. Pennsylvania St.
Indianapolis, IN 46204