6-year-old helped father call 911 after west-side double shooting killed mother
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Wilma Hochstetler would do anything to help people, friends said.
She spent her last hours alive helping her husband Jonathan change a trailer tire and fix broken lights.
She spent her last breaths trying to warn him about an impending attack.
Two armed men robbed the Worthington couple Thursday around 1:30 a.m. near the 3000 block of North High School Road, according to Andrew Yutzy, a longtime family friend.
The suspects began walking away with the couple’s wallets and Wilma’s phone, then unexpectedly turned around, returned “and just point-blank shot Wilma and then Jonathan,” Yutzy told News 8.
Jonathan was struck in the neck and critically injured but managed to crawl to his truck, where the couple’s youngest child was hiding.
He asked his 6-year-old son to get his cellphone from the vehicle. The little boy grabbed it and handed it to his father so he could call 911.
But it was too late for his mother.
Wilma, 40, died at the scene. She leaves behind three daughters and a son.
“He said, ‘Mom’s gonna get up again,’” Yutzy said. “He doesn’t realize that his mom is gone.”
Those who knew her said Wilma dedicated her life to her family and faith and was known for her kindness and love of traveling.
The Hochstetlers spent the last two winters doing mission work to help children in Honduras.
In Bloomfield, they nurtured a family-owned roofing and gutter business.
Jonathan was finishing up at a work site on the west side of Indianapolis when he called his wife for help Wednesday night.
He sent his work crew home with his truck. Wilma, accompanied by their son, drove the truck back to Jonathan with a replacement tire for his trailer.
Their relationship was a model partnership defined by constant teamwork, Yutzy said.
Wilma and Jonathan grew up about a mile and a half apart, and attended the same church and youth group.
“Two shy people met each other and fell in love,” Yutzy recalled. “They were always together.”
Jonathan underwent surgery Thursday night to fuse together three vertebrae. His broken heart is unmendable, friends said.
Authorities had not yet released suspect descriptions Friday night. Anybody with information about the armed robbery and double shooting is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 317-262-TIPS.
