Murder charge still pending in Greenwood restaurant shooting

Charges are still pending for the Greenwood man arrested in connection the fatal shooting outside a local restaurant last week.

Marco Antonio Gonzalez, 25, was arrested on preliminary charges of murder and criminal recklessness Monday evening. Police believe he shot Timothy A. Sannito, 52, of Indianapolis, outside Ale Emporium, 997 E. County Line Road on March 8.

Gonzalez is currently held without bond at the Johnson County jail. His booking record has a Whiteland address, but his last known residence is in Greenwood, said Jim Ison, Greenwood police chief.

First responders were called to Ale Emporium on a report of a person shot around 9:20 p.m. on March 8. Sannito was found shot in the restaurant’s parking lot, and was taken to Sidney & Lois Eskenazi Hospital in Indianapolis where he died around 9:56 p.m. The media was not informed of his death until the following morning.

At the time, police said they believed Sannito and another man had an argument that led to him being shot. Detectives believed it may have been a targeted event, though they did not know enough to say if the two men knew each other, Ison said last week.

Comments on social media have cast doubt on this narrative, as many have said Sannito was kind-hearted and would not be confrontational.

Police have not released additional information about the investigation, instead referring inquiries to the Johnson County Prosecutor’s Office. The investigation remains active and formal charges are pending against Gonzalez.

Prosecutor Lance Hamner said today the office expects to file charges Wednesday.

Sannito’s death has left his friends and family with an “unsettling void in their lives,” his family wrote in his obituary. Originally from Hammond, he graduated from Purdue University’s engineering program before receiving an MBA degree from the University of Indianapolis.

For the last 30 years, Sannito has worked at NSK in Franklin. He’s also coached many teams for many years for both his son and daughter, and loved being a dad and husband.

“He was a family man and loved deeply,” the obituary says.

Sannito is survived by his wife Karen, two children, his mother, three brothers and several nieces and nephews, the obituary says.

A fundraiser was set up to help cover funeral expenses, and in four days more than $12,445 has been raised by 55 people so far, according to the fundraising page on Treasured Memories Community Funding.

Karen Sannito thanked people for donating to the fundraiser in a comment on the page. Their family is shocked, devastated and heartbroken about what happened.

“Tim was a wonderful and dedicated husband, father, son, son-in-law, brother, brother-in-law, and a gentleman,” she wrote. “This vicious and hateful attack on Tim has left us all broken. He will be loved and missed by all of us forever.”

In an update, representatives said the goal had been reached to cover funeral expenses. However, they are keeping the fundraiser open until March 31 for donations to help his family get through the next few weeks.

To donate, go to tmcfunding.com/funds/tim-sannito-funeral-expenses/7649/.

Editor’s note: An online-only point of clarification was added to note Gonzalez lives in Greenwood currently, though his booking records have a Whiteland address.