INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (February 10, 2015) – The Marion County Coroners Office says they have identified a woman who was found shot to death in an alley on the north side of Indianapolis Tuesday morning.
Officials say Amanda Hartley, 26, died from multiple gunshot wounds. The manner of death was ruled a homicide.
Investigators said a passerby found Hartley’s body near the intersection of North College Avenue and Fairfield Avenue around 5:20 a.m. The witness was walking to work when the body was found and he called 911. It is unclear at what time Hartley was shot.
“The witness has been very cooperative by making the 911 call and remaining on scene,” said Officer Chris Wilburn, from IMPD.
There were some reports of gunfire overnight in the area where the body was found. Police are looking into 911 calls to determine if there is any connection to the murder investigation.
As the Coroners office and Police Detectives worked to uncover clues about the killing, people in the neighborhood were anxious to learn if the victim could be someone they recognize.
Hartley’s body was found directly behind a boarded-up house which was thought to be vacant. But a neighbor across the street said the house was not empty. He said a young white woman had been living in the home for several months.
“All summer long, I’ve been seeing her go in that house and come out all summer,” said a neighbor named T.C. “She would get on the bus and come off the bus with bags and go in there.”
Eddie Owens, with the Indianapolis Ten Point Coalition, has patrolled the neighborhood for years. He says he was aware of a young woman who worked as a prostitute on the same block.
“I hope that it’s not her,” Owens said. “Because we do see some females out here walking, and in particular with the white young female.”
Owens says the area near College Avenue and Fairfield Avenue has its fair share of problems with drug activity and prostitution. But the neighborhood has been relatively quiet recently.
“People know what’s going on in their neighborhood,” Owens said. “Sometimes they want to stop it and don’t know how. And sometimes they know how, but they don’t want to.”
Police said this specific area does not appear to be significantly high in terms of drug consumption but it’s been on the department’s radar.