Three people found guilty of murder in death of 'Mr. Indianapolis' during 2020 riots

The latest: Trio convicted of former IU football player's murder sentenced to 100-plus years each

Three people have been found guilty of murder and other charges in a string of robberies and the fatal shooting of a former Indiana University football player during protests and riots that gripped downtown Indianapolis in 2020.

The jury trial for Marcus Jayon Anderson, Nakeyah Shields and Alijah Jones began Monday, close to three years after the fatal shooting of Christopher Beaty on May 30, 2020.

Anderson was found guilty of two counts of murder and eight counts of armed robbery, while Jones was found guilty of murder and eight counts of armed robbery and Shields was found guilty of murder and seven counts of armed robbery, court records show.

The 15-minute crime spree in 2020 climaxed with the death of Beaty, 38, near his downtown residence. 

According to authorities, Beaty, a defensive lineman at Indiana University from 2000 to 2003 whose name now titles a scholarship in the school's football program, was killed near midnight while surveilling the area where he lived after marches over police killings of Black Americans devolved into riots.

From Tuesday: Fatal shooting of 'Mr. Indianapolis' goes to trial, with 2020 unrest playing a key role

“I’m bout to walk around the block now to make sure my building is good," Beaty messaged someone over his phone at 11:35 p.m., according to a probable cause affidavit filed by law enforcement. Minutes later, his body was located by police in the 400 block of North Talbott St.

In their opening statement to the jury Monday, prosecutors argued the three defendants were captured by multiple video cameras and are seen walking on North Talbott Street after Beaty's death. They robbed six people and attempted to rob two more across the span of a city block, deputy prosecutor Anne Frangos said.

Anderson was the first person charged in Beaty's death at the end of a months-long police investigation. Shields and Jones were charged with murder more than six months later when a grand jury indicted the two defendants.

More: Chris Beaty homicide: 2 more suspects charged with murder in 'Mr. Indianapolis' killing

To begin the trial, attorneys representing the defendants said the chaos that night made it too hard for the state or law enforcement to definitively say who was guilty of the crimes.

"There was a lot of unrest — there was a lot of uncertainty," Joshua Puryear, the public defender representing Anderson, said.

Detectives pieced together cellphone data, victim statements and forensic evidence to help build a timeline of what amounted to some of the most serious crimes to strike downtown during the riots. They took still images from surveillance footage and cast them out to the public — a key decision that helped authorities solicit tips and get the information they needed to identify the suspects.

After his death, condolences from across Indianapolis poured in for Beaty, a beloved entrepreneur who returned to his home city and worked in marketing for nightclubs in the years after he graduated. In an interview with IndyStar, a former business partner called Beaty "Mr. Indianapolis" because of how well-connected he was.

"Whoever did this, they have no clue of the void they cost a lot of people," Beaty's past IU roommate Courtney Roby previously told IndyStar. "With everything going on in our country right now, and the negativity that swirls around, just to have one positive light, one glimmer dimmed, it’s unimaginable.”

Sentencing hearings for Anderson, Shields and Jones in the Beaty murder case are set for 9:30 a.m. June 21.

Trio tied to other shooting during downtown riots

The trial this week relied on testimony from around 30 people and brought to close Marion County's prosecution of the fatal crimes that marred downtown the weekend of May 30, 2020.

Police say the trio is connected to another deadly shooting that occurred just hours after Beaty's death and was tried in court last year.

Around 2:20 a.m. May 31, 18-year-old Dorian Murrell was shot near Monument Circle following an alleged confrontation between a group Murrell was with and two people who had come to downtown to watch the unrest.

Anderson and Jones were at the hospital where Murrell was transported, according to police. When Jones was interviewed on-site by an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department detective, he said Murrell was his brother. One of the two people at the other end of the confrontation, Tyler Newby, was prosecuted for shooting Murrell. Newby claimed he shot Murrell in self-defense, saying he and his long-time friend were approached by a group of people before he was shoved to the ground. He said he fired at the person standing over him. That shot struck Murrell in the heart.  His first trial ended in a mistrial because the jury couldn’t reach an agreement on a verdict. His second trial was in front of a judge, who found him guilty of reckless homicide. Newby was sentenced to probation and is now appealing his conviction. 

Contact Jake Allen at jake.allen@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jake_Allen19.

Call IndyStar courts reporter Johnny Magdaleno at 317-273-3188 or email him at jmagdaleno@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @IndyStarJohnny

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indianapolis crime: 3 people found guilty of murder in 2020 riots death