Indiana Cops Find Several Dead Bodies, Others Chained in a Kidnapping and Murder Plot; One Suspect Arrested, Another is Killed

(Photo : Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
LAPORTE, IN - APRIL 13: A yellow ribbon is wrapped around a tree outside the home of Jeffrey Ake, President and CEO of Equipment Express April 13, 2005 which is a northern Indiana company that sells equipment to fill and package water bottles in LaPorte, Indiana. A recent video aired on Al-Jazeera television shows a hostage believed to be Ake sitting behind a wooden desk as three men pointed their guns toward him.

A 36-year-old Indiana woman was arrested earlier this week after police discovered two people tied up and shackled in her home. One of the two is deceased.

According to reports, Heidi Carter has been charged with multiple charges of criminal confinement and abuse of a corpse. She is currently being held at the Vanderburgh County jail.

Heidi Carter's house cleaner called the police

On Tuesday, an Indiana state trooper was flagged by a woman who told authorities that she stopped by Carter's home only to find a dead body inside.

The unnamed woman said that she went to Carter's home to clean the property ahead of a scheduled inspection when she took a seat on a pile of blankets. The woman soon realized that there was a dead body underneath the blankets.

Police responded to a call not knowing what to expect

After calling 911, officers from the Evansville Police Department arrived at Carter's home, and the suspect informed the officers that there were still people inside the property.

The officers urged them to step outside the house, and it was during this time, a man rushed out of the house, and he was released.

However, a second man rushed out of the door aggressively, pointing an object at the police. Police officers fatally shot him. When the officers entered Carter's home, they saw a woman who had been tied up and shackled.

At least four people were found

Evansville Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Anna Gray confirmed that another woman was found inside Carter's house, but she's already deceased.

"Another individual was located inside the residence but unfortunately was deceased and beyond help. The manner of death appeared suspicious and gruesome. He had been restrained, duct-taped, beaten, and strangled," Gray said via The Daily Beast.

Officers also found two teenagers on the second floor of Carter's home, and they were evacuated out of the property.

Reports revealed that Carter met both of her victims on a dating app and invited them over. The unnamed man who police officers shot was also part of Carter's plan. He was responsible for beating both guests with a baseball bat before Carter shackled them.

Carter told the police that she had just followed the unidentified man's orders for fear that he would hurt her. Police officers are convinced that the late male suspect has a criminal history. It was later confirmed that the man that the police shot was Carter's boyfriend, Carey Hammond.

Heidi Carter's long criminal history revealed

According to Courier & Press, Carter is the one with a long criminal history. Carter previously committed lower-level violent crimes in Central Indiana in the last couple of years.

In October 2018, she was sentenced to a year at the Marion County jail for a domestic battery charge. Following her plea agreement, Carter only served 13 days of her one-year sentence.

In 2017, Carter repeatedly punched one of the house occupants after she forgot to close the door, resulting in the suspect's dog escaping the premises. She later attempted to break down the door of the victim's bedroom.

According to Tristate, Carter had been staying at Jason Harvey's house, where the kidnapping and murders took place. Harvey said that he had no idea that something terrible was happening under his roof.