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Man convicted in triple Indianapolis murder going to prison for life

Kenneth Lancaster sentenced to 170 years
Posted at 2:43 PM, Nov 15, 2019
and last updated 2019-11-15 14:51:32-05

INDIANAPOLIS—25-year-old Kenneth Lancaster will spend the rest of his life in prison.

The Indianapolis man was sentenced to 170-years Friday, following his conviction last month for a triple murder on the city's east side.

Lancaster was charged in the 2017 shooting deaths of 64-year-old Mark Higgins, 34-year-old Keith Higgins and 34-year-old Jessica Carte at their home near East 16th Street and North Franklin Road.

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According to a probable cause affidavit, investigators said Lancaster was Carte’s drug dealer and he was giving her money to rent vehicles for him under her name.

Detectives said Lancaster discovered Carte was keeping the money, and in response, he told her to meet him at a house
on the city's southeast side.

There, he tied her up and took her phone and purse. Investigators say Lancaster then took Carte to the house where she was killed, along with Mark and Keith Higgins.

Detectives later spoke with a witness who reportedly overhead Lancaster saying that, “she (Carte) should have thought about that and made the funeral arrangements when she stole the money from us.”

Other witnesses described hearing Lancaster talk about and admit to the homicides on multiple occasions.

Lancaster was arrested early last year. A criminal history filed in the case lists previous arrests for Lancaster in Marion County on charges of possession of cocaine, dealing in a narcotic drug, unlawful possession of a firearm by a domestic batterer, battery, domestic battery, strangulation and alteration of handgun identifying marks.

At the time of his conviction in October, Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears praised those who had worked on the case. “The perseverance of detectives, deputy prosecutors, and the rest of the trial team on this challenging case brought justice to the families of the three victims," said Mears.