The man accused of fatally shooting his father last week in Greenwood reportedly told his mother that he shot him.
Jacob M. Moran, 22, is charged with murder and domestic battery in the presence of a child less than 16 years old as a Level 6 felony after prosecutors say he both battered and later fatally shot his father, 45-year-old Greenwood resident Shaun M. Moran, on Aug. 28. Charges were filed Thursday in Johnson County Superior Court 3.
The shooting occurred just before 8:50 p.m. Aug. 28., and two domestic battery incidents occurred several hours earlier led up to the shooting.
Officers first responded to the home in the 400 block of Euclid Avenue at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 28 for a domestic battery incident. Shaun Moran told police he had been allowing Jacob to stay at the home, as Jacob had said he was homeless, according to court documents.
Since Jacob Moran arrived at the home, his father told police he had been causing issues, including being verbally aggressive and disrespectful of property. This led to a verbal argument between the two, court documents say.
Shaun Moran asked Jacob Moran to leave and take his belongings, and Jacob Moran allegedly began to assault him in front of two family members. Jacob Moran later left the home in a white BMW with a temporary plate, court documents show.
Jacob Moran returned to the home a few hours later around 4:40 p.m., pushing his way into the home. He allegedly assaulted Shaun Moran again in front of a minor, according to court documents.
Police were called to the home, but they say Jacob Moran was gone by the time they got there. Shaun Moran asked officers about having extra patrols at the home in case Jacob Moran returned, court documents show.
Jacob Moran had reportedly threatened Shaun Moran’s family that he would go to his car and get “his piece,” referring to a gun. Shawn Moran told officers that Jacob Moran did not display a weapon during this incident but was known to carry a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson handgun, according to court documents.
The fatal shooting allegedly occurred a few hours later. When officers responded to the home for a third time at 8:50 p.m., all that could be heard on the initial incomplete 911 call was shallow breathing.
Dispatchers then received a second 911 call from a woman screaming, “Someone killed my husband.” The woman, later identified as Shaun Moran’s wife, told deputies that Jacob Moran, her stepson, had killed her husband. Shaun Moran’s body was found in the garage, according to court documents.
Police spoke with neighbors while at the scene, including a neighbor who also called 911 after the shooting. The neighbor heard loud pops and observed Moran running into the BMW after the shooting, court documents show.
Inside the home’s garage, investigators were able to determine that the person who shot Shaun Moran had done so from outside the garage. The shooter had fired a shot from outside a window into the garage and into Shaun Moran’s back, according to court documents.
A .40 caliber shell casing was recovered from the driveway outside the garage window. Police also found an empty .40 caliber Smith & Wesson handgun gun box next to Jacob Moran’s belongings in the garage, court documents show.
GPD searched for Jacob Moran’s BMW using Flock License Plate readers. At 11:31 p.m., the vehicle was seen near Shadeland Avenue and Interstate 70 in Indianapolis. In the early morning hours of Aug. 29, the car was seen near Franklin Road and East 30th Street — near the home of Jacob Moran’s mother.
His mother told police that he had told her that it would be the last time she would see him. He reportedly told her he had seen Shaun Moran going through his belongings in the garage, and asked Shaun Moran about it.
Jacob Moran alleged Shaun Moran had said something derogatory to him before turning his back around and continuing to go through his stuff. He then told his mother that he had shot Shaun Moran through the window and that he heard him scream. He also said that the “gun jammed and he did not know if he would have kept shooting,” court documents say.
Jacob Moran also said the gun was still in the car but he planned on getting rid of it, court documents show.
GPD later issued an alert to other agencies to be on the lookout for Moran, as they were unable to find him. At about 9 a.m. on Aug. 29, they were notified that Jacob Moran had been taken into custody by Michigan State Police in Sturgis, Michigan.
A state trooper said they were called to the area where Jacob Moran was on a report of a suspicious vehicle parked along a dead-end road. They had also learned that the vehicle was wanted in connection to a homicide investigation involving an armed and dangerous suspect, according to court documents.
When the trooper spoke with Jacob Moran, he learned that he had an unregistered .40 caliber handgun in the vehicle. The gun’s serial number was a match to the gun box that was found in the garage, court documents show.
Jacob Moran was then arrested and taken to a Sturgis, Michigan jail on a charge of possession of an unregistered handgun. The BMW was impounded, court documents say.
Jacob Moran waived extradition and was expected to arrive at the Johnson County jail soon after charges were filed on Thursday.
