INDIANAPOLIS – On Saturday, February 3, at approximately 9:00 p.m., the Indiana State Police were contacted by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department about a person who arrived at a local hospital with injuries consisting of a gunshot wound.
A preliminary investigation determined the victim was allegedly struck by gunfire while driving on I-70 near Shadeland Avenue in Indianapolis. Indiana State Police Detectives responded to the hospital to investigate.
After speaking with the victim, detectives began analyzing information, including data from Flock traffic cameras and surveillance footage from a business. Detectives were able to identify a suspect vehicle and, subsequently, a suspect who they believed was involved in the shooting incident. Officers from the Franklin Police Department located the vehicle at a hotel in Franklin. Probable cause was developed, and a search warrant for a hotel room in Franklin, Indiana, and the suspect vehicle was requested and granted by a Marion County Judge. In the overnight hours of Monday, February 5th, Indiana State Police Detectives and ISP SWAT searched the hotel room and impounded the suspect vehicle. Detectives were able to develop probable cause to arrest Ernesto Espinoza 24 of Donna, Texas. He was incarcerated at the Marion County Jail on preliminary charges of Attempted Murder.
In 2023, Troopers in the Indianapolis District investigated 56 gunfire incidents on Indianapolis area interstates. In that same area, troopers investigated an additional 236 incidents of road rage where a gun was reported to be pointed or displayed. This incident is the 4th incident in 2024 of shots being fired on the interstate. The Indiana State Police would like to strongly discourage motorists from engaging in any road rage as these incidents lead to violence.
The arrest in this case was based upon probable cause. The charges listed are preliminary. The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office will determine actual charges in this case.
