Juvenile Relative Arrested in Indianapolis Slayings of 5 People, Including Pregnant Teenager

An arrest has been made in Indianapolis after the killings of five people, including a pregnant woman.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police confirm a 17-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with the slayings, which were discovered by officers Sunday morning.

Because of his age, the name of the boy has not been released. At this point, the youth has not been charged as an adult.

Police did say that he was related to the five victims: Kezzie Childs, 42; Raymond Childs, Jr., 42; Elijah Childs, 18; Rita Childs, 13; and Kiara Hawkins, a pregnant 19-year-old, whose unborn child also died.

Police responded to a 911 call at around 4 a.m. Sunday about a possible shooting. They arrived to find a young boy outside, suffering from a gunshot wound. 

The boy was rushed to the nearest hospital, and is expected to survive the shooting.

At 4:40 a.m., police received additional information about other possible shooting victims where the boy had been. They arrived at a home on Adams Street to find the five other victims.

Kiara Hawkins was transported to a hospital where attempts to revive her, and save her unborn baby boy, failed.

"Yesterday, we promised swift justice for this heinous act," said Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Chief Randal Taylor in a statement Monday. "Today, we delivered on that promise."

Taylor added that, "while removing the alleged perpetrator of yesterday's mass murder from our neighborhoods does not bring back the lives senselessly lost," he hopes that the arrest "will bring us one step closer to healing as a community."

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Taylor thanked his own officers as well as the "criminal justice partners who have worked tirelessly for the last 30 plus hours to bring justice for these victims."

He asked the community at large to "join me in praying for the continued recovery of the young man whose life has been forever changed."

At this point, there is no known motive for the killings.

During a press conference Sunday, Taylor, fresh from the crime scene, described the crime as "a different kind of evil." 

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