2000s – Page 2 – Indiana Infamy

Man Sentenced to 35 Years for Death of 8-yr-old

*_{Child killers Kimberly Grosklos and Derrick Dale}*

A Cumberland man was sentenced yesterday in connection with the death of his girlfriend’s daughter.

On the afternoon of April 6, 2020, Cumberland Police were called to a residence in the 11000 block of Kirkwood Drive after first responders reported a child in cardiac arrest. Brooklyn Mendheim, 8, was rushed to the hospital, where she later died. One of the nurses who treated her told police she had “extensive, fresh injuries” of the type usually seen in victims of physical and sexual abuse.

The child’s mother, Kimberly Grosklos, and Derrick Duane Dale, Grosklos’s boyfriend, initially tried to convince police the child had intentionally drowned herself in the bathtub. However, one of the other three kids – ages 11, 9 and 4- who were removed from the home broke down in tears and told authorities Brooklyn had been beaten with jumper cables shortly before her death.

An autopsy determined there was no water in the girl’s lungs. Her cause of death was ruled to be caused by nonaccidental trauma and suffocation.

Kimberly Grosklos, 34, received a 20-year sentence earlier this month after pleading guilty to neglect of a dependent resulting in death.

Last month, a jury found 31-year-old Dale, guilty of aggravated battery resulting in death, neglect of a dependent resulting in a death, and battery resulting in serious bodily injury to a person less than 14 years old. He was sentenced on Friday to 35 years.

Police Searching for Woman Missing Since April

South Bend Police are asking for help finding a woman who was reported missing more than two months after she seemingly vanished.

Details are scarce, but 39-year-old Elizabeth Gearhart hasn’t been heard from since April 25th. However, her disappearance was only recently reported to authorities.

Elizabeth is 4’10”, 116 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. She has a butterfly tattoo on her lower back.

If you have information about this case, please contact Detective Bruno Martinsky at 574-235-9204 or 574-235-9201.

Neighbor from Hell Sentenced for Shooting Man in Head

*_{Billy Wilson Sr., 78, will almost certainly remain in prison for the rest of his life.}*

An Hagerstown man has been sentenced for gunning down his neighbor.

Billy Wilson Sr., 78, was found guilty last May of killing his neighbor, KC Simpson, 32, during an argument stemming from a property line dispute.

According to court documents, the two men had an extremely contentious history prior to the November 2020 argument. Witnesses stated Wilson had shot Simpson’s dog, Zeus, and killed his chickens in the past. He had also threatened Simpson family members when they rode their dirt bikes.

The incident that claimed KC Simpson’s life began when he discovered a stranger on his property in the 4700 block of North Brick Church Road. He stepped outside to speak to the man and was instead confronted by Billy Wilson Sr., his neighbor to the south. Wilson explained that the man was a surveyor he’d hired to locate the precise placement of the line separating their properties. Simpson then offered to pay half of the survey’s cost because he wanted to put up a fence, but Wilson insisted Simpson was responsible for the entire bill.

The two men argued. Wilson yelled, “I’m done with you guys, you guys are too much over there” and “I’m not messing with you, you better get to running” before he pulled out a gun and shot Simpson three times. Simpson fell to the ground, and Wilson walked over to him and fired three more shots, each of them to Simpson’s head.

Wilson surrendered to police without incident after the shooting. KC Simpson was airlifted to an Indianapolis hospital, where he later died.

Wilson was found guilty of Simpson’s murder in May. Last week, Judge Charles Todd Jr. sentenced him to 48 years, citing the 78-year-old’s lack of remorse as an aggravating circumstance. With the 1½ years Wilson served prior to trial and sentencing, plus maximum good time credit, he would be age 113 before his release.

Wilson has announced plans to appeal his conviction.

Man Impersonates Police Officer to Gain Control Over Teen

A southern Indiana man is in jail after authorities say he impersonated a police officer over the weekend.

Jim Zink, 63, is accused of identifying himself as a policeman at a Jasper McDonald’s and demanding a juvenile employee be released into his custody. The restaurant’s security footage shows Zink flashing a badge before the teen eventually left with him.

Dubois County Sheriff Tom Kleinhelter confirmed the suspect had worked as a county jail employee from October 2017 until September 2018. Details of how he knew the juvenile have not been released.

Zink is charged with impersonation of a public servant, a Level 6 felony.

Woman Runs Over Boyfriend Three Times, Gets Arrested for Murder

*_{Andre Smith was a victim of domestic violence.}*

An Indianapolis woman has been charged with murder after killing her boyfriend because she found him with another woman.

A little after midnight Friday, IMPD officers responded to a call concerning a dispute in the parking lot of Tilly’s Pub in the 3900 block of East 82nd Street. When they arrived, they found Andre Smith, 26, pinned beneath a car. He later died at the scene.

According to court documents, Gaylyn J. Morris, 26, used an Apple AirTag to follow Smith because she suspected him of cheating. She tracked him to the pub, where she found him in the company of another woman. Morris then grabbed an empty wine bottle and swung it at the unidentified woman, but Smith stepped between them and grabbed the bottle.

The three of them were then asked to leave.

While Smith’s companion stayed inside to wait for a food order, Smith and Morris stepped outside. The probable cause affidavit states Morris got into her Impala and “pulled forward and clipped the victim (Smith), and he went down, at which time… (Morris) then backed over him and then pulled forward and hit him for the third time.” With Smith still trapped under the vehicle, she got out of her car and again attempted to attack the other woman before being detained by police.

Morris is currently being held on a preliminary charge without bond. IMPD is asking anyone who witnessed the crime to call homicide detectives at 317-327-3475.

Silver Alert: Missing 14-Yr-Old Boy

A 14-yr-old is missing from his northern Indiana home.

Authorities are asking for help finding Jalen Winfield of Osceola. He was last seen around 9:30 p.m last night. The Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department believes he is in extreme danger and may require medical assistance.

Jalen is described as a black male with black hair and brown eyes. He stands approximately 5 feet, 3 inches tall and weighs 116 pounds. He was last seen wearing a dark blue T-shirt with a glow-in-the-dark skull and camouflage pants with black shoes.

If you have information concerning Jalen, please call 911 or the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Office (574-533-4151).

Crawfordsville Man Gets 50 Years for Decapitating Wife

*_{Michael Dale Parks, 46, negotiated a plea for the gruesome murder of his wife.}*

A Crawfordsville man who initially reported his wife missing has been sentenced to 50 years after pleading guilty to her murder.

On August 20, 2020, Michael Dale Parks reported his wife missing to the Crawfordsville Police. According to the statement he gave at the time, Parks told officers he hadn’t seen his wife Hope for two days. He said they had argued, and she’d supposedly thrown her wedding rings at him before getting into a white car driven by an unknown person. He also claimed to have attempted to reach her by phone several times without success.

At the same time Parks was giving police information about his “missing” wife, investigators from the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office were at a crime scene about two miles west of Crawfordsville on County Road 225 West. A headless body later positively identified as Hope Parks had been found draped over the Sugar Creek Bridge railing.

When asked, Parks consented to a search of the couple’s South Elm Street residence. Officers quickly found blood on the house’s deck and in the driveway, as well as a bloody shoeprint in the garage. At that point, they obtained a search warrant for the rest of the house.

Authorities then found a wealth of additional evidence, including a .22 rifle, ammunition, and a blue tarp with what appeared to be bloodstains. In the yard, they discovered a trail of blood and a .22 shell casing. A phone police believe belonged to Hope Parks was located inside a bedroom safe.

Her severed head was found buried in the basement.

An autopsy later determined she had been shot in the back of the head. She had also suffered blunt force trauma to her chest and extremities before her husband beheaded her with a mitre saw.

Court records show that roughly 20 years earlier, Michael Parks had a prior conviction of domestic battery in which Hope was the victim. Several other charges of domestic battery against him had been dropped over the years.

Montgomery County judge Harry Siamis sentenced Parks to 50 years in prison after accepting his guilty plea earlier this month. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Parks must serve his entire sentence with no time suspended. He will not be eligible for parole.

Michael Parks will be 94 years old when released from prison.

If you or someone you love is the victim of domestic violence, please contact the 24- hour Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence hotline @ 1-800-332-7385.

UPDATE: Silver Alert Issued for Kokomo Woman

Authorities in Howard County are asking for help in finding an 80-year-old Kokomo woman believed to be in extreme danger.

Betty Stroup was last seen at her home in the 2300 block of North 100 East Street around 4 am yesterday morning. Stroup has dementia and may require medical assistance. She is described as a white female, approximately 5-feet-2-inches tall, 118 pounds, with green eyes and white hair. The elderly woman is believed to be wearing burgundy pajamas with hearts on them and may possibly be accompanied by a black Shih Tzu.

UPDATE: Sadly, Betty Stroup and her dog Cookie were found Sunday night, May 30th, in a ditch less than a mile from her home. Although toxicology tests are still pending, an autopsy has indicated she drowned. No foul play is suspected.

Details Released in Goshen Mass Shooting

_{Prosecutor Vicki Becker speaks to the press with Sean Pounds}*_{, stepfather of the victims, by her side.}*

Elkhart County prosecutor Vicki Becker held a press conference Monday to discuss the Goshen mass shooting that killed two and injured three over the weekend.

Although authorities were somewhat cagey concerning details of the May 21st crime, the perpetrator was identified as David Valera Morales, 20. He died at a Goshen Hospital following the shooting, but it’s currently unknown if his wounds were self-inflicted.

All four victims of the attack on Rosedale Court were members of the Arellano-Rios family. Richard Rios (age unknown) died at the scene. The remaining three victims are Rios’s siblings. Police have withheld names because of their ages, but two girls were airlifted to a trauma hospital in Fort Wayne and another was taken to a trauma hospital in South Bend. Their stepfather, Sean Pounds, said they are doing “as well as can be at this point in time.”

No motive has been released for the shooting. At the news conference, Elkhart County Prosecutor Vicki Becker stated, “There will not be details at this point in time regarding the roles of any individuals involved in what occurred.”

The investigation is ongoing.

If you have information about this case, please contact the Elkhart County Homicide Unit at(574)-295-2825. Tips can also be emailed to media@elkhartcountyprosecutor.com.

MISSING: Indy Mother and Child

*_{Erica Rios and her daughter, Angel Holmes, were last seen five days ago.}*

Police are asking the public to help locate a missing Indianapolis woman and her daughter.

Erica Rios, 43, was last seen Friday, May 20th. The next day, her car was seen traveling west on Interstate 70 near SR 39 in Hendricks County, but it’s unclear if she was driving. Angel Holmes, 11, is believed to be with her mother, and family members are deeply concerned about them.

Erica Rios is described as 5 feet, 3 inches tall and 133 pounds. She has black hair and hazel eyes. Her daughter Angel is 4 feet, 3 inches tall and weighs 70 pounds. She also has black hair and hazel eyes. Police do not know what they were wearing at the time they disappered.

Anyone with information on their whereabouts is urged to call 911 immediately, or contact the IMPD missing persons unit at 317-327-6160.