Tevis Walker.Photo:Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department
The body of a missing teenage girl was found in the woods behind her Indianapolis apartment complex — and now a maintenance worker in the development is accused of killing her.
At noon last Wednesday, officers responded to a report of a body found in a wooded area near the Carriage House East Apartments, the IMPD said. A woman who was walking her dog found the girl’s lifeless body behind the complex, where Janiya lived,Fox 59reports.
Janiya was pronounced dead at the scene from injuries consistent with gunshot wounds, the IMPD said. She had been shot in her right cheek and had suffered trauma to the back of her head, Fox 59 reports.
On Thursday, police arrested Tevis Walker, 34, for his alleged role in Janiya’s murder, the IMPD said in the statement.
Investigators later learned that surveillance video allegedly showed Janiya getting into Walker’s Kia Optima at 4:32 a.m. on Saturday, Fox 59 reports.
At 5:25 a.m., Walker drove back to his apartment, parked the car and went inside the building, which is “just a few hundred feet from the scene,” the affidavit said, Fox 59 reports.
It is unclear how Walker and Janiya knew each other, or if they did.
He allegedly told police that he picked up a girl on Saturday and drove her to buy a tablet, the affidavit said, Fox 59 reports. He said he drove the girl back to the complex when the person selling the tablet failed to show up, the affidavit said.
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
Janiya’s mother was sick with worry when her daughter went missing on Oct. 30 and reported her disappearance to police.
Police considered her a runaway, online records show, according to theIndy Star.
Suspect Had Active Warrants in 2 States
Boston was furious when she learned that Walker had active warrants in Alabama and Georgia, WTHR reports.
“How is it that they allowed this man to work here knowing that he has a warrant out of Alabama?” Boston said, WTHR reports. “How can you allow that? I feel tortured.”
The owner of the apartment complex, the Gene B. Glick Company, said in a statement to WTHR that Walker had only been working at the complex for a few months.
“A Carriage House East employee has been arrested for this crime and we are working closely with IMPD to actively assist with the investigation. Our community’s private security force, comprised of off-duty IMPD officers, has been working with and providing information to IMPD and their detectives and investigators.
Walker is being held without bond. It is unclear whether he has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
The IMPD expressed its sorrow for Janiya’s death.
“The senseless and tragic death of Janiya Carr is unconscionable and unacceptable for her family, friends and community,” IMPD Deputy Chief Kendale Adams said in the statement.
As police continue to investigate, Janiya’s family is reeling.
“I feel empty,” Boston told Fox 59. “I feel confused. I have so many emotions. I feel sick.”
A student atArsenal Technical High School, Janiya recently attended her homecoming and planned to celebrate her 16th birthday in a few weeks, her mother told theIndy Star.
“I don’t know how to live with this pain,” Boston said, theIndy Starreports.
source: people.com
