Missouri man charged in Indiana trooper’s death

UPDATE (June 18, 2024): Demareon Curry was sentenced to 2.5 years on June 17, 2024. He had earlier pleaded guilty to a count of resisting law enforcement.

HENDRICKS COUNTY, Ind. — Two people have been preliminarily charged in the death of Indiana State Police Trooper Aaron Smith that occurred Wednesday evening.

Eddie P. Jones, Jr., 18, from Sikeston, Missouri, who was driving the stolen 2016 Chevrolet Traverse, has been preliminarily charged with murder, a Level 1 felony.

Passenger 19-year-old DeMareon L. Curry from Sikeston, Missouri, is facing an auto theft charge, a Level 5 felony.

The second passenger, a 15-year-old female, who was listed as a missing person from Missouri will be turned over to authorities. She is not being charged in connection with the incident.

The pursuit began in the 2900 block of Kentucky Ave. with state troopers attempting to pull over the stolen vehicle driven by Jones Jr. Troopers then chased the suspect vehicle to Ronald Reagan Parkway, where Smith was attempting to deploy stop sticks near the entrance to the I-70 Westbound on-ramp to stop the stolen vehicle and terminate the pursuit.

INDOT video in the area shows the vehicle swerve toward Smith as he is throwing the stop sticks. Smith is hit and thrown into the air. The suspect’s vehicle then crashed after hitting the trooper.

INDOT video shows other state troopers rush to Smith’s side. He was taken to Eskenazi Hospital but later died from his injuries. Trooper Aaron Smith was 33 years old.

The car the suspects were in crashed into the guardrail near the onramp for I-70 WB and went down an embankment. At the base of the hill, there is broken glass, car parts and even a receipt and work badge from Sikeston, MO.

In the wake of his death, messages from across the state have come in honoring Smith and sending condolences to his family, friends and coworkers.

Thursday afternoon, a Plainfield police officer pulled up to the scene of the crash, got out in the rain and placed flowers at the site.

The Hendricks County Prosecutor will make the final determination of these preliminary charges and will review the potential for additional criminal charges.

On Thursday, Captain Jon Broom with the Sikeston, Missouri Public Safety Department said that the Chevrolet being driven by Jones was first reported stolen on June 22, six days prior to the fatal collision, by Jones’ mother.

Cpt. Broom said that it is currently unclear if the car belonged to Jones’ mother or if she’s just responsible for it. He also said that the stolen car was picked up on Flock Cameras in Indianapolis, which is how troopers first spotted the car.

According to Sikeston Police, investigators believe all three of the people inside the suspect car were together. Cpt. Broom added that the city’s juvenile department is going to make arrangements to get the 15-year-old girl back to Missouri.

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