A man was sentenced to life in prison after fatally shooting four people, including his girlfriend’s seven-year-old kid, in order to take his partner’s stimulus checks.
Malik Halfacre, 28, went on a shooting spree in 2021 over his girlfriend’s stimulus check, killing her seven-year-old daughter and three more family members. Halfacre received a 145-year jail term for triple murder in excess of $1,400.
The victims included Eve Moore, 7, Dequan Moore, 23, Tomeeka Brown, 44, and Anthony Johnson, 35. Jeanettrius Moore, the shooter’s girlfriend, also sustained a gunshot wound but managed to survive. Jeanettrius lost close family members: her brother Dequan Moore, her mother Tomeeka Brown, and her cousin Anthony Johnson.
The bloodbath occurred on Randolph Street when authorities say Halfacre was caught searching through his girlfriend’s handbag for the stimulus check she received during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Police discovered Jeanettrius in the home after arriving on scene, according to a probable cause affidavit. She informed them that Halfacre fled the scene with the couple’s 6-month-old child shortly after opening fire. The gunman later revealed that he stopped by his sister’s house to drop off his kid and “all of the baby’s stuff” before leaving.
While there, he confessed to the shooting. According to the documents, “She then described how he called a friend on her phone, and the friend agreed to help Mr. Halfacre get out of town.” Law enforcement officials tracked down the shooter’s companion and waited outside the residence for him to leave.
They then interviewed him at a traffic stop. He informed them that Halfacre had sneaked inside his girlfriend’s home on Eastridge Road. They dispatched the SWAT team to remove Halfacre from the property, but he initiated an hours-long standoff.
“SWAT negotiators attempted to communicate with him.” They attempted to deliver messages to the residence. They reached out to the resident, letting him know that they would be installing gas. They waited for him to come out. “Genae Cook, a public relations officer for the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, stated that they had patiently waited almost three hours for him at the time of the standoff.” After about three or four hours, SWAT team members gained entry to the property and discovered Malik Halfacre in the attic area. “The suspect then gave up without incident.”
Halfacre was eventually apprehended after confessing to shooting everyone at the house in order to obtain a share of Jeanettriu’s stimulus check. Eve’s grandma, Yolanda Graham, said she wanted her granddaughter to be remembered as more than just a victim of gun violence.
“We aim to highlight her; we want to encourage everyone involved, as there are numerous individuals involved, and our ultimate goal is for everyone to remember their humanity,” she said. They are not just victims, and there is more to them than what happened here,” she explained.
