Indianapolis, IN
Man, 45, facing three counts of arson in IndyGo bus fire
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Kelly Wilkinson, kelly.wilkinson@indystar.com
The man accused of setting an IndyGo bus on fire last week was found with two lighters and smelled like “ignitable liquid” when he was arrested about a quarter mile from the scene, according to court documents.
The bus was engulfed in flames at a stop on the north side of Indianapolis near the intersection of 38th Street and Meridian Streets on the morning of April 24.
The 45-year-old man taken into custody in connection with the arson was located at a McDonald’s restaurant down 38th Street.
There were four people on the bus, including the driver. The bus driver said all passengers evacuated through the middle door of the vehicle. Indianapolis Fire Department officials said two passengers were transported to Eskenazi Hospital to treat slight injuries afterwards.
Investigators used survelliance footage and information from the bus driver to make an arrest, according to a probable cause affidavit for the suspect’s arrest.
IndyGo had cameras inside the bus and at the bus stop shelter. The man arrested at the McDonald’s had the same clothing on as the man who set the bus ablaze in the video, the affidavit reads.
The video showed the man getting on the bus at the transit center in downtown Indianapolis around 6:45 a.m. He was carrying a clear, plastic milk jug with a brown liquid inside.
About 20 minutes later, the video showed the man on the bus lighting a piece of paper on fire then blowing it out. He then moved to a seat closer to the bus’ exit and pretended to drink from the milk jug, according to the affidavit.
Previous coverage: IndyGo bus fire at 38th and Meridian ends in arson arrest
At about 7:10 a.m., as the bus was approaching the stop, the video showed the man pouring the liquid out of the jug then lighting paper on fire and throwing it toward the liquid on the floor of the bus, the affidavit reads.
The liquid ignited into a large ball of fire, the video showed. The bus driver told investigators he had stopped the bus and was walking to the back to ask the man what was in the jug when the man started the fire, according to the affidavit.
The passenger who started the fire had ridden the bus a few other times in the week prior, the bus driver stated. The driver identified the man detained at McDonald’s as the arsonist, the affidavit reads.
The bus was a 2018 2018 BYD all-electric bus and the damage from the fire cost IndyGo $2.1 million, investigators learned.
Demarcus McCloud was arrested in connection with the arson. He is charged with two counts of arson as well as arson resulting in bodily injury, court records show.
McCloud has faced charges in several other criminal cases filed in Marion County in the past five years, including several drug-related cases. An attorney for McCloud was not yet listed in online court records before publication of this article.
McCloud is currently in custody at Marion County’s Adult Detention Center, but prosecutors have filed a motion asking he be ordered to stay away from all IndyGo buses and stations if he were to be released before a trial.
Prosecutors also filed a motion requesting a greater than standard bond for McCloud.
“Defendant is a risk to the safety of the community, due to the nature of the allegations against him in this case,” prosecutors wrote in that motion.
Online court records were not yet updated with scheduling information on the next hearing in the case before publication of this article.
Contact Jake Allen at jake.allen@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jake_Allen19.
Indianapolis, IN
Indianapolis Democrat Andrea Hunley to seek bid for mayor’s job in 2027
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — State Sen. Andrea Hunley, a Democrat representing Indianapolis, has announced her candidacy for a bid to run for mayor of Indianapolis in 2027.
Hunley, who had previously teased a mayoral run, has scheduled a launch event for May 8 as her official kickoff her campaign to lead the city, said her campaign website. The Assistant Minority Leader in the Senate announced in January that she would not seek another term in the Indiana Senate, to which she was elected in 2022.
Hunley’s website says, “Indianapolis is my city. Our city. As someone who knows this city, someone who has served this community as a public school teacher leading our children and supporting families, I am committed to the future of the people of Indianapolis.
“Indianapolis is the economic driver and a key cultural hub for our state. Our city boasts creative entrepreneurs and long-standing local businesses, vibrant neighborhoods and corporate headquarters, community-centered nonprofits and public schools. I aim to champion a better quality of life by listening to and working alongside the people, businesses and neighborhoods that make up our great city.”
Mayor Joe Hogsett has not disclosed if he’s seeking a fourth four-year term.
City-County Council Member Vop Osili in January announced his campaign for the Democratic nomination.
In the same month, Pike Township Trustee Annette Johnson announced her intention to seek the Democratic nomination to run for mayor. She’s running this year to continue in the trustee’s job, which she has held since 2019.
Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears, who had been mentioned as a possible Democratic candidate for mayor, announced in January he would seek another four-year term this year for his current job. However, he did not rule out running for the Democratic bid for mayor in 2027.
Indianapolis, IN
Louisville native set to make debut in Indianapolis 500
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – While Louisville is famous for one race in May, a Derby City native is set to make his first appearance in a different iconic May race.
Jacob Abel will be making his first appearance in the Indianapolis 500 on May 24, racing for Abel Motorsports, founded by his father, Bill Abel.
“I am excited and grateful to be able to return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to have a shot at the Indianapolis 500. It’s been a lifelong dream to compete in that race and to have the opportunity to do it with Abel Motorsports and Chevrolet makes it even more special,” Jacob said.
Both Abels, the driver and the team, had breakout years in 2024 with three pole positions and three wins in the INDY NXT drivers’ championship, propelling the 25-year-old driver to the NTT INDYCAR Series the following year.
Practice for the 110th Indianapolis 500 begins on Tuesday, May 12 with qualifying being held on May 16 and May 17. The race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway goes green on May 24, coverage begins at 10 a.m.
Copyright 2026 WAVE. All rights reserved.
Indianapolis, IN
IMPD: Man stabbed in downtown Indianapolis
INDIANAPOLIS — A person was stabbed in downtown Indianapolis Sunday evening.
According to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, officers were called to the intersection of East Market and North Delaware Streets around 8:28 p.m. to investigate a stabbing. When police arrived at the scene, they located an adult male victim with apparent stab wounds.
IMPD has confirmed that the victim was transported from the scene to a local hospital in critical but stable condition.
Investigators believe the stabbing “stemmed from a disturbance between multiple individuals and the victim.”
IMPD has reported that it has not identified or detained any suspects or persons of interest at this point in its investigation of the stabbing. Police have indicated that they are hoping witnesses come forward with information that can help them identify or locate the suspects.
“The officers now are doing a complete investigation,” IMPD Lieutenant Frank Wooten said during a media briefing Sunday night. “They’re going to investigate this to the best of their ability. We’re going to try to locate our suspect, arrest the suspect, prosecute the suspect and hold that suspect accountable for this heinous crime in Indianapolis. This is not an indication of what our city is about. This is not an indication of what we do downtown, and we hold this to be very serious. So, we will hold whoever did this responsible for their actions tonight.”
Sunday night’s stabbing represented a continuation of a violent weekend in downtown Indianapolis.
Early Sunday morning, two men were critically injured in a shooting near a White Castle on South Street. Before that shooting occurred, police arrested two juveniles on gun charges at Monument Circle.
Police also conducted a shooting investigation near the Hilton hotel located at 120 W. Market St. around 4 a.m. Sunday. Nobody was injured in that shooting.
Elsewhere in the city, a person was injured in a shooting in a CVS parking lot on Kentucky Avenue Saturday evening. Another individual was killed in a shooting outside a residence in the 2300 block of South Pennsylvania Street Saturday night.
Public police reporting systems indicate IMPD has investigated nine shootings that caused injuries since midnight Saturday. During that same timeframe, IMPD has investigated six shootings that did not result in any injuries and five stabbings.
Numbers available on shootings and stabbings in IMPD’s public reporting system may not be complete, as some reports on weekend shootings and stabbings may not have been entered yet.
“This is not what we want Indianapolis to be,” Wooten said. “This is not what we expect out of the citizens of Indianapolis. We expect them to be safe, come downtown and have a good time, and be able to go home the same way they came down here. So, we will hold these suspects, once located, accountable for this crime.”
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