INDIANAPOLIS -- A suspect in Thursday's slayings of seven people allegedly said beforehand that he planned to kill everyone in the victims' house, according to a probable cause affidavit filed Monday.
Police said they believe Desmond Turner and James Stewart were involved in the fatal shootings of three boys and four adults at 560 N. Hamilton Ave. on Thursday night. Both were arrested within 48 hours of the killings.
Authorities said Turner, 28, and Stewart, 30, armed themselves and robbed the house on a false rumor that they would find large amounts of cash and cocaine inside.
According to the affidavit, informants told police that Turner, on the day of the killings, talked to people about needing money and about preparing to "hit a lick," which police said was street terminology for robbery.
About 30 minutes before the Hamilton Avenue killings, Turner spoke to someone who lived near the home and asked for duct tape, according to the affidavit.
Turner then talked about a safe containing a large amount of money and cocaine at 560 N. Hamilton Ave., and that he and Stewart would take their "choppers" -- identified by police as street terminology for automatic rifles -- and kill everyone in the house, the court document said.
"Things were said by one or both of the suspects prior to (the crime) ... indicating they very well may be committing acts of violence in addition to robbing the place," Indianapolis police Lt. Brian Moore told
6News' Jack Rinehart on Monday.
Affidavit: Stewart Claimed Shooting Started After Victim Pulled GunNot long after the discussion about the safe, police said in the affidavit, Turner and Stewart knocked on the door of 560 N. Hamilton Ave. and were admitted inside. When they entered the home, only five occupants were there, but eventually two of the occupants' relatives -- Flora Albarran and her brother, Magno Albarran -- arrived nearly simultaneously, police said.
According to the affidavit, Stewart, recounting the robbery later to an unidentified person, said he went upstairs to look for the supposed safe but found nothing. He said that he then saw a man who had just entered -- apparently Magno Albarran, 29 -- point a gun at Turner, so Stewart shot the man, police said in the court document.
Stewart told the person that Turner then "started shooting everybody," according to the affidavit.
All seven victims were shot multiple times in the head and torso, police said.
Stewart told the person that he did not shoot the children, and that he repeatedly asked Turner not to do so, according to the court document.
Among those killed Thursday night were Alberto Covarrubias, 56; Emma Valdez, 46; and their sons Alberto Covarrubias, 11, and David Covarrubias, 8.
Also killed were Valdez's two adult children, Flora Albarran, 21, and Magno Albarran; and Flora Albarran's son, Luis Albarran, 5.
"The three children were all ... executed in their beds" in one bedroom, Moore told 6News.
People outside heard gunshots and called 911 shortly after 10 p.m. Thursday. Witnesses told police they heard Flora Albarran screaming.
Informants helped lead investigators to suspect Turner and Stewart, police said. After the shootings, police searching a home of a Turner acquaintance found clothes matching what Turner was said to be wearing Thursday, according to the affidavit.
The clothes were found in a bathtub, soaking in a mixture of cleaning solutions, alcohol and lotions, the court document said.
The acquaintance told police she didn't know the clothes were there, and that the clothes weren't hers, according to the court document. She did tell police that Turner had borrowed her truck on Thursday, the affidavit said.
Crime lab technicians found what they believed to be blood in the vehicle, according to the affidavit.
Stewart was arrested during a traffic stop Friday. Turner surrendered to police on Saturday.
Turner and Stewart are being held without opportunity for bail. Prosecutors said they intend to file murder charges against both on Tuesday, and Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi said he will pursue the death penalty against Turner.
Police said Stewart has been convicted of felonies including handgun violations, resisting arrest, dealing cocaine and residential entry.
Turner was on parole at the time of the killings. He was sentenced in 2002 to six years in prison -- two of which he served -- for a violent crime involving a weapon.
Funeral Services SetA funeral Mass for the elder Alberto Covarrubias will be held at noon Tuesday at St. Mary Catholic Church, 317 N. New Jersey St. Burial will follow at Washington Park Cemetery East. Viewing was held at Crown Hill Funeral Home on Monday.
A funeral Mass for the rest of the slain relatives is scheduled for Wednesday at 11 a.m. in Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral, 1347 N. Meridian St. Flanner and Buchanan Funeral Centers are handling arrangements.
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