38-year-old man stabs his mother and attempts to decapitate his stepfather. Then police find the suspect inside the home soaking wet in his underwear

Officers with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) responded to a call on October 11, 2026, for a reported stabbing. Now, a 38-year-old man stands accused of attacking his mother and attempting to decapitate his stepfather with a shovel. Allegedly, he also used a kitchen knife in the attack on his stepfather.

Both victims died from their injuries, and the man has been preliminarily charged with murder, though formal charges have not yet been handed down. Police are still investigating and trying to obtain warrants to gather more evidence.

Witnesses saw at least part of what occurred

When police arrived at the scene, they reportedly discovered a 75-year-old woman dead inside the home, next to a pair of bloody garden shears. An 80-year-old man was found in the driveway in critical condition, but he passed away later at the hospital. According to WTHR, per court documents, they also discovered the 38-year-old suspect inside the home, “where he had stripped down to his underwear and was soaking wet.”

The court documents also revealed that authorities spoke to a witness. The witness stated that he heard an odd moaning noise outside, and when he went to investigate, he found the alleged suspect hitting a man with a shovel repeatedly in a driveway. The witness was the one to tell authorities that it appeared as though the suspect was attempting to decapitate the stepfather. According to the witness, they yelled at the suspect, which caused him to return inside the house. Moments later, the man supposedly re-emerged, still carrying the shovel, along with a kitchen knife.

The witness claimed they wrestled with him over the shovel and managed to get it away, but the man only continued his attack on the stepfather with the kitchen knife. Though they reportedly tried to hit the suspect with the shovel, he went inside the house once more.

A mental health condition may have played a role

While at first the crime might seem like a family dispute gone wrong, police said the department’s Mobile Crisis Assistance Team had been called to the home before. Reportedly, a neighbor also told the police that the man’s parents had said he’d recently stopped taking his medication for his mental health condition.

Authorities took the purported suspect into custody without further incident, and the suspect appeared to understand what had happened. However, the man didn’t want to answer the officers’ questions “because ‘they’ had been holding him against his will.”

IMPD Officer Tommy Thompson reportedly stated, “It’s a very disturbing, sad day for this quiet neighborhood. residents are very upset. We ask that you think about them at this time. Think about this family. What a loss.”

One neighbor who spoke with WTHR purportedly shared, “They really were the nicest people I’d ever known. And I’m 64 years old, so I know a lot of people.”

The alleged suspect is reportedly being held in Marion County Jail without bond, pending the filing of formal charges.

Have a tip we should know? [email protected]