Police arrest man in fatal double shooting

Metro Police have arrested a man in connection with a fatal double shooting. Police questioned Darryl Shepherd, 44, Thursday after he turned himself in.

Police believe a dispute over a rental space may have led to the shooting in which a father was killed and a son injured on the near east side Wednesday night.

Police were called to the 2100 block of Sheldon Street just before 7:30 p.m. after neighbors reported hearing an argument followed by gunshots.

When police arrived, they found Michael Couch, 19, shot in the arm and his father, 43-year-old Gary Couch, lying in the street. Medics tried to revive Gary Couch, but nothing worked.

Police were looking for Shepherd of Indianapolis for questioning in connection with the shooting. He faces preliminary charges of murder, aggravated battery, criminal recklessness and carrying a handgun without a license.

Neighbor Dolores Stowers heard the gunshots.

"By the time I got my coat and came outside, I saw someone standing in the street hollering 'My dad, my dad!'," Stowers recalled.

Kay Toliver, another witness, said, "I was laying down getting ready to take my nap before I got to work and I heard five shots. I jumped up and looked out the door and I heard the guy hollering…I couldn't believe it. I was standing right there when they were working on him and they said he was gone. And I just shook my head."

Witnesses said they saw the suspect walking away from the crime scene and down the street. They say he didn't seem very upset.

"He was just walking, real casual," said Toliver.

Police believe an argument over rental garage space that belonged to Shepherd may have spurred the shooting.

"We believe one of the people on the scene was on the phone with the 911 operator when the shots were being fired," said Sgt. Paul Thompson, IMPD.

Investigators used police dogs and a helicopter to search for Shepherd. They said he left his car behind, still running because it got stuck in the mud.