Malik Halfacre, 28, of Indianapolis, was sentenced to 145 years in prison for shooting and killing a 7-year-old child and several of his girlfriend’s family members over a $1,400 stimulus check. Halfacre pled guilty in June to the March 2021 killings of Eve Moore, 7, Dequan Moore, 23, Tomeeka Brown, 44, and Anthony Johnson, 35.
Halfacre’s girlfriend, Jeanettrius Moore, was also shot and survived. She is the mother of the seven-year-old girl who died. Dequan Moore was Jeanettrius Moore’s brother, and Tomeeka Brown was her mother. Johnson was a cousin of Jeanettrius Moore.
The terrible shooting occurred on March 13, 2021, in a residence on Randolph Street, when police stated Halfacre was caught rifling through Jeanettrius Moore’s handbag looking for a stimulus check she received during the coronavirus outbreak.
According to a probable cause affidavit acquired by Law&Crime, when police arrived at the home, they discovered Jeanettrius Moore inside and learned from the woman that Halfacre had fled with their 6-month-old daughter after opening fire.
Halfacre’s sister later contacted the police and informed them that she had the child. During an interview with detectives, Halfacre’s sister stated that her brother had arrived at her home, knocked on the door, entered, and dropped off the baby and “all of the baby’s stuff” before departing.
Halfacre’s sister told detectives that her brother confessed to the murders.
“She then described how he called a friend on her phone and the friend agreed to help Mr. Halfacre get out of town,” according to the paperwork.
officers were able to locate Halfacre’s friend and surveil the residence until the friend left, and officers were able to question him at a traffic stop. The man told authorities that Halfacre was inside his girlfriend’s home on Eastridge Road.
Local Fox affiliate WXIN reported in 2021 that when a SWAT team arrived at the property, an hours-long confrontation ensued.
“SWAT negotiators attempted to establish contact with him. They did attempt to deliver messages to the house. They made touch with the resident and informed him that gas would be installed. They waited for him to emerge.
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Genae Cook, a public information officer for the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, stated in 2021 that they patiently waited for him for more than three hours. “After about three or four hours, SWAT squad members gained entrance and discovered Malik Halfacre inside the residence’s attic area. The suspect then surrendered without incident.”
When Halfacre was eventually apprehended, police stated he told them that he and Jeanettrius Moore were arguing “because he wanted some of her stimulus checks” and that after shooting everyone, “he took the money, J.M.’s purse, and her car and left the scene.”
Following the murders, Yolanda Graham, the 7-year-old girl’s paternal grandmother, told WXIN that she did not want her granddaughter to be known just as a victim of gun violence.
“We do not want to talk about the violence,” Graham stated. “That’s enough of it. We want to hoist her up, as well as everyone else involved because there are so many of them, and we just want everyone to recognize that they are individuals. They are not just victims, and there is more to their situation than what happened here.”
Eve Moore was characterized as a bright youngster and a “funny kid” who was “always in good spirits, happy, laughing, and playing.”
Halfacre had a criminal record before the March 2021 quadruple homicide. He shot a guy in 2017, but later pleaded guilty to a lesser offense of pointing a firearm, WXIN said.
According to court records reviewed by Law&Crime, Halfacre was originally charged with four charges of murder and one count of attempted murder. He was also charged with armed robbery, a felon with a firearm, and auto theft.
Ryan Mears, a Marion County prosecutor in Indianapolis, first considered pursuing the death penalty on Halfacre, according to local NBC affiliate WTHR. But, after a few months of his detention, Halfacre pleaded guilty to murder and attempted murder counts, and the remaining charges were withdrawn.
On Friday, when Halfacre was sentenced, Mears thanked the victims’ families for their patience at such a terrible, grief-stricken time.
“The defendant will spend the rest of his life in prison and this resolution provides finality to the criminal matter, as our community continues to heal from this horrific tragedy,” Mears said to Lawandcrime.