MORGAN COUNTY, Ind. — The Morgan County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a shooting that left a man dead shortly after midnight on Sunday.
According to a press release, MCSO deputies were dispatched just before 12:30 a.m. to the area of State Road 142 and State Road 39 on the report of a person shot. Officers located a man suffering from a gunshot wound upon their arrival, and the Morgan County Coroner’s Office pronounced him dead on-scene.
A press release from the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office indicates the decedent has been identified as 18-year-old Thawng Tha Sang of Indianapolis.
MCSO reported that a preliminary investigation revealed that the shooting took place at a residence in the 1100 block of Robb Hill Road. Reportedly, the victim fled the scene in a vehicle and ended up stopping near SR 142 and SR 39, where he later died.
Detectives are still trying to determine why Sang made the journey from his home in Indianapolis to the rural area near Monrovia police found him in. Law enforcement is also trying to figure out how many people Sang made the trek with, if any.
At this time there is no evidence shots were fired from a house in the area, and detectives are investigating whether anyone traveling with Sang was armed.
”Its just sad because this is a quiet neighborhood,” said Mark Wright, an associate pastor at a nearby church that was flanked by crime scene tape after the shooting. “We came in this morning and saw all this. It’s like, wow. And it’s happening in our neighborhood.”
The location of the shooting is significant and a difficult drive from the parts of Indianapolis.
“Its just like anything else,” Wright said. “We know that trouble travels from Indy, not just from there but Mooresville, Trafalgar, its all over the place.”
An autopsy Tuesday may determine how Sang was killed and whether the fatal shot was fired from inside the vehicle in which he rode.
Wright was concerned about the death of another central Indiana teen due to gun violence.
”They shouldn’t have them, but I believe that everybody should be able to carry,” he said. “We have that right to carry, but, we have a 16, 17-year-old, where did they get the gun? Who’s responsible for it?”
Police added they have not made any arrests in relation to the case at this time. Law enforcement believes the shooting was an isolated incident that does not pose an ongoing threat to the community.
Police are still investigating the shooting and the circumstances that led to it. They are asking those with information on the incident to contact Morgan County Public Safety Dispatch at (765) 342-5544. Alternatively, tipsters who wish to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at (317) 262-8477.
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