BEDFORD – A man was sentenced to prison after being involved in an incident on August 25, 2021, at 276 Rawlins Mill Road where officers found Byron Ira sitting inside a truck. Ira had suffered a gunshot wound to his head.
Today one of those involved, 35-year-old Noah Dike, of Springville, was sentenced to nine years in prison after he pleaded guilty to aggravated battery when the assault poses a substantial risk of death in a negotiated plea deal.
Judge Robert Cline sentenced Dike to nine years in the Department of Corrections, with one year suspended. He was given credit for 441 days served. Upon his release, he will be on one year of supervised probation. He must also participate in Adapt, complete 80 hours of community service, provide proof he receives an HSE diploma, and if unemployed complete the Intro to Local Jobs and Skills Course. He was also ordered to pay $300 to Adapt and $185 in court costs.
“This agreement ultimately reflected the strength of the case, we had several problems to overcome as it related to witness testimony and evidence that was available to be utilized at trial, however, the end result was that a dangerous person was removed from Lawrence County,” said Prosecutor Sam Arp II.
Dike was arrested along with two other Springville residents on attempted murder and drug charges after the incident.
Police also arrested 51-year-old Thomas Beasley, 33-year-old Hope Grissom, on felony charges of attempted murder, conspiracy to deal meth, aggravated battery, conspiracy to deal marijuana, and criminal recklessness. Those charges were dropped when Dike pleaded guilty to a lesser charge.
On August 25, 2021, at 11 p.m. deputies responded to 276 Rawlins Mill Road and found Byron Ira sitting inside his truck. He had suffered a gunshot wound to his head.
According to Ira, as he exited his residence he saw three or four individuals walking toward him. Before he could enter his truck he was shot.
A search warrant was obtained for this residence and property.
A 9mm and a .22 caliber spent shell casing was located in the driveway. Several spent .223 caliber shell casings were located on the west side of the driveway. Four bullet holes were located just above the garage entry door in the siding of the residence and one .223 bullet was located in a kitchen cabinet of the residence.
During this search, police located marijuana and meth in a Fed-Ex package. The package was addressed to 234 Rawlins Mill Road, Apartment B. which is not Ira’s residence. This apartment is rented by Tammy Nicholson and Jathan McCormick.
On August 27, 2021 police received an anonymous tip that the individuals involved in the shooting were Noah Dike, Tom Beasley, and Jathan (last name unknown). It stated a package was delivered containing drugs with the intent to sell and that Dike was the supplier. The witness told police they also had guns similar to those used in the shooting.
This witness told police they saw the three arrive at the apartment on Rawlins Mill Road looking for their stolen Fed-Ex package.
The witness heard three resonating boom sounds and then witnessed McCormick, Grissom, Beasley, and an unknown male run to their vehicles.
The witness said Beasley was carrying a rifle.
On August 30th, Nicholson confirmed that McCormick, Dike, Beasley, Grissom, and an unknown male were at the apartment when the shooting occurred.
Nicholson said the Fed-Ex package containing meth and marijuana was intended to be delivered to Beasley’s house. However, it was sent to her apartment instead. She told police the arrangement was for Beasley and Dike to pick up the delivered package and in return, Nicholson would receive “two balls” (approximately seven grams of meth), however, the package never arrived.
The group believed Ira had stolen the package of drugs valued at approximately $7000 and confronted him.
Nicholson reported that Dike fired the gun in the air and from there “it was a chain reaction”. This is when Beasley allegedly shot Ira.
Nicholson then told police that the men got rid of their weapons.
Lawrence County Police later learned that Indiana State Police were investigating allegations that Dike was dealing meth in Lawrence County.
A confidential informant had purchased meth from Dike on several occasions. During one of those transactions, Dike told the informant “he is working up north and needs to wait until it cools down and he can get back home”. Dike told the informant “that package, someone stole it right, so I went after them. Long story short, there were a bunch of people there, and a dude got shot. The people are in jail because the cops came in on the package and they are now looking at 20-30 years in jail for two pounds of dope and a couple of pounds of weed. Right now I gotta stay out of the way. You know what I mean.”
The information was forwarded to the Lawrence County Prosecutor’s Office and warrants were issued.
Both Beasley and Grissom are scheduled for pretrial conferences on November 2, 2022, before Judge John Plummer III. Beasley is scheduled to appear at 9 a.m. and Grissom at 1 p.m.
