Richmond murder suspect arrested as part of effort to ID gang activity

RICHMOND, Ind. (WISH) — A 20-year-old charged with murder and attempted murder was among four men taken into custody Wednesday after several local law enforcement agencies joined the FBI to serve arrest warrants, the Richmond Police Department chief said in a media release.

Lataj Brewer, 20, was arrested Wednesday in the 1500 block of South Fourth Street, said the release from Michael Britt. The police chief could not immediately be reached to determine the murder or attempted murders that Brewer was charged with committing.

Brewer was charged with a count of murder, two counts of attempted murder, and four counts of criminal gang intimidation. He was being held in the Wayne County Jail without bond.

The release said, “The teamwork of this law enforcement partnership has directed their efforts and considerable resources in identifying the individuals in several shooting incidents, one murder and many shots fired incidents as well as other crimes, by a self-proclaimed criminal gang that has been operating in our city and county for the last several months.”

Also arrested, according to the release and Wayne County Jail records:

• Deonte Gabbard, 19, was arrested in the 400 block of North 20th Street and charged with three counts of robbery. He was being held on a $50,000 bond.
• Peyton Sutton, 20, turned himself in at Wayne County Jail. He was charged with a count aggravated battery, and and two counts of criminal gang intimidation. He was being on a $35,000 bond.
• Dominique Walker, 23, was arrested in the 700 block of Winding Ridge Drive and charged with a count of providing a firearm to a criminal person, and a count use of false information to obtain a firearm. He was being held on a $15,000 bond.

A total of 50 law enforcement officials were involved in serving the arrest warrants Wednesday.

None of the men were listed as having warrants in the state’s online court system.

The only additional information from the police chief in the news release: “This is a part of a lengthy, ongoing investigation to curtail this recklessness and help ensure the safety of the citizens of our community. As a result of this morning’s operation numerous firearm’s and illegal substances were removed from our streets. I would like to recognize and thank our partnering agencies for their hard work in making Richmond a safer place to live and work. Additionally, many thanks to the district and specialized officers, and Crime Analyst for their outstanding performance in gathering intelligence outlining criminal events and affiliations. I would also like recognize the long hours and hard work by our Detectives, Uniformed Patrol Division and S.W.A.T.” 

Richmond is about 55 miles east of Indianapolis.