INDIANAPOLIS — An east side woman has her car back after it was stolen from her at gunpoint weeks ago.
The armed robbery occurred on Oct. 3. Her case and others like it are evidence of a growing crime trend in Indianapolis.
“I just feel a little bit more safe… and it’s nice,” Haley Talkington said. “When I got the call they found my car I just felt pure relief. It was like, oh my gosh, yay! But then I was so concerned, what shape is my car in? Is it okay?”
FOX59 first spoke with Talkington on Oct. 7, hours before her car was found.
Police returned Talkington’s car the morning of Oct. 8. They found her car three miles from where it was stolen along the 7500 Block of South Village Way.
Talkington and her boyfriend’s cars both were stolen by six armed individuals mere feet from their front door.
“It was probably the worst experience I’ve ever had,” Talkington said. “By the time we look up, we realize it’s six grown men on us with guns and they’re yanking at my keys, telling my boyfriend to like pass over his stuff and you know… before we knew it they were speeding off with our cars.”
While her car was found minutes away without a scratch, save for several missing items inside, her boyfriend’s car was not…
“They found it totaled. Completely totaled. Front bumper tore off. They had run it up a stop sign, smashed between a stop sign and a fire hydrant,” Talkington said. “But it’s nice at least one of our cars is intact and… if anything, I’d rather it be mine because it’s newer and it’ll last us so much longer.”
Experts say Talkington and her boyfriend did exactly what they should have in such a scary situation… listened to the armed thieves and called 911 as soon as it was safe to do so.
“Your car is not worth your life… and a lot of these people have guns and they will shoot. They will shoot you. It’s not worth getting injured,” said IMPD Robbery Branch Lieutenant Pauli Irwin. “Just back up, let them take the car. It’s not worth your life. Because we’ve just had too much violence in this city and it’s just not worth dying over.”
To combat the rise in carjackings and armed vehicle robberies in the city, IMPD created a task force to try and catch those responsible.
“We noticed a pretty significant increase in carjackings, and we were trying to think of what we could do and creating the task force is going to help us identify, locate and arrest these individuals,” Irwin said. “We want to get them before they start getting into the really violent crimes cause carjacking can be violent but these are used in shootings. These cars that they’re taking are used in shootings, business robberies, home invasions… they need a ride to get there because they’re often kids.”
Talkington has her car and her boyfriend is working to replace his – however, police are still looking for the people who took them.
“It’s still an active and ongoing investigation and so hopefully we get justice for her,” said IMPD Public Information Officer William Young. “I spoke with the investigator involved with that case and he’s still asking folks if you have any information in regard to that specific incident to please give us a call.”
Talkington has a message to the thieves in the meantime.
“Honestly, I believe a lot in good karma and bad karma and I feel like I had my good karma by getting my car back,” Talkington said. “But I really hope you guys get what’s coming to you… but I also hope you guys learn a really important lesson. I hope you’re valuing the stuff you’re stealing from people and at least treating it with respect because you’re taking something from people who already don’t have anything.”