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14 shot, 5 killed, in past four days in Indianapolis

Seven victims under the age of 20
Posted at 4:41 PM, May 08, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-08 16:55:40-04

INDIANAPOLIS -- Fourteen people have been shot, five fatally, in the past four days in Indianapolis.

The spike of violence began Thursday morning, when 18-year-old Brittany McNew was shot and killed in the 3400 block of West Michigan Street. McNew was pregnant at the time.

A second fatal shooting was reported Thursday evening in the 7800 block of Penobscot Drive. The victim, a 21-year-old man, has not been identified by police.

After that, reports of shootings only increased.

On Friday, four people were shot – including 32-year-old Joseph Goodin, who was found dead in a garage in the 5900 block of Bertha Street.

MORE | Man shot, killed in garage on Indy's west side | One dead in shooting on Indianapolis' east side | Pregnant woman shot and killed on the west side | Dispute over shoes led to shooting that killed Warren Central student

Three people were shot Saturday all in the same incident. IMPD officers were called to a report of three teens shot on west 38th Street in a dispute over shoes. One of those teens, 17-year-old Angel Mejia-Alfaro, was killed.

Five more people were shot Sunday morning, beginning with a double shooting involving two teens shortly after midnight and ending around 9 a.m. with a man shot in the foot on Rybolt Avenue.

In between, 34-year-old Martel Thomas was shot and killed in an alley near 10th and Rural Streets.

Click below to see the up-to-date 2017 Indianapolis Homicide Map:

While the circumstances of the shootings differed, the victims had a lot in common: Nearly 80 percent of them were black men between the ages of 17-34. Half of the victims were under the age of 20.

At a meeting of current and former IMPD detectives held Monday morning, Chief Brian Roach stressed the importance of the department's relationship with the community in turning the tide on gun violence.

"There's a lot of discussion around community engagement and what is it we can do so the message to our community is to believe in us and share information with us. We need that," Roach said. "Public safety is a community partnership. It sounds cliché, but it really is. In order to turn our neighborhoods around, we really have to have a good relationship with our communities."

So far, 14 of this year's 41 criminal homicides have resulted in an arrest.

If you have information that can help solve a crime, you can make an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana by calling 317-262-TIPS.

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