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A Facebook post alleges BRICS supports ICE. The owners want to clear that up

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A Facebook post alleges BRICS supports ICE. The owners want to clear that up


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  • A post from a spouse of a co-owner of BRICS went viral in Indy groups this week, leading many to call to boycott the shop.
  • The Broad Ripple business quickly distanced itself from the pro-ICE views but stopped short of posting their own stance.
  • Now, the owners are working through the aftermath.

A Broad Ripple ice cream shop found itself under fire on social media this week after one its owners posted in support of Immigration Customs and Enforcement, prompting many to pledge to stop supporting the business.

The social media ordeal in which the store BRICS found itself raises the question of whether small businesses should publicly take sides on political and civil issues and how much a business owner’s politics should dictate whether one supports the business or not.

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In a lengthy interview Jan. 30 with the IndyStar, the BRICS owners said the post on the personal Facebook page of the spouse of a minority owner did not represent the sentiment of BRICS ownership. However, they say, they will not release a statement against ICE, either, preferring to remain political neutral to operate as a safe third space for people on all sides of the debate.

“We feel very differently from what was posted,” said David Vonnegut-Gabovitch, the majority owner of BRICS. “But our concern was that if our statement says we feel totally the opposite, then everybody on the other side starts going the other way.”

That was not enough for Jen Colson Estes, a Meridian-Kessler resident, who first called out the shop on social media for a Facebook post she saw made by Jenny DuBow, spouse of BRICS co-owner David DuBow. As ICE enforcement in the country has ramped up, Colson Estes posted on her personal Facebook page that she would not visit the ice cream shop because of the post.

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“She has the right to post it, and we have the right to never go there again,” Colson Estes told IndyStar.

Soon after Colson Estes’s initial post on Jan. 29, it went viral on Indianapolis social media, circulating in north side, Midtown and food-focused Facebook groups. Jenny DuBow’s profile has since been made private, but screenshots on Facebook and confirmed by BRICS ownership show she reposted an “I Stand With ICE” image.

BRICS released a statement on Facebook on Jan. 30, saying that the statement did not reflect the store’s beliefs.

“We regret that posts made on a personal social media account and circulated have been attributed to our business – this is not us!” the statement read.

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Vonnegut-Gabovitch, Kirstie Hileman and David DuBow co-own BRICS, which has operated along the Monon Trail in Broad Ripple for 15 years. Vonnegut-Gabovitch holds the majority stake in the company, 70%, with Hileman and DuBow having a minority stake of 20% and 10%, respectively. The three run the day-to-day operations of the company, they told IndyStar.

Yet, the names of their spouses, Jennifer DuBow and Nonie Vonnegut-Gabovitch, appear on BRICS’ website. The two are not involved in the store’s operation of the store and cannot speak for it, the three principals say.

The statement did little to calm the flames. In an interview with IndyStar, Hileman said BRICS fielded about 15 phone calls on Friday and several more the day before as the post spread. David DuBow was not present at the interview but Vonnegut-Gabovitch and Hileman said they were speaking for him as well.

The owners said they made a conscious decision not to simply write a statement decrying ICE.

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“It would have likely been easier for us to just make an apology and make a political statement, but we don’t think that’s the best way,” Hileman said. “If we’re removing businesses’ right to remain neutral and be a third safe space, how is it that our public will ever be able to have safe discourse?”

That said, they are making a concerted effort to tell longtime customers and community partners that their individual views in no way align with the controversial post. Hileman and Vonnegut-Gabovitch said in an interview with IndyStar that the views of the three owners, including David DuBow, are “wildly different” than the views expressed in the post.

“It’s not something any of us were involved in, not something any of us believe, but we do respect her First Amendment right,” Vonnegut-Gabovitch said. “She has a right to her views, and I believe we couldn’t change that.”

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The flap started a day before thousands of businesses across the country closed their doors in a nationwide protest of ICE sparked by agents’ fatal shooting of two U.S. citizens, 37-year-olds Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, in Minneapolis earlier this month.

Several Indianapolis businesses around town posted they would participate while others announced they would donate to causes that support undocumented immigrants.

Instead of taking to social media to take a side on ICE, the BRICS owners are encouraging people to visit the shop and have face-to-face conversations with the owners and with one another. On the afternoon of Jan. 30, the shop was quiet, with a few adults and children spread out eating ice cream.

“We want to bring it down at least for us, at least within our four walls, on our social media, bring that temperature down and move on and serve ice cream,” Vonnegut-Gabovitch said.

Alysa Guffey writes business, health and development stories for IndyStar. Have a story tip? Contact her at amguffey@usatodayco.com or on X: @AlysaGuffeyNews.

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Indianapolis, IN

Indianapolis Democrat Andrea Hunley to seek bid for mayor’s job in 2027

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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.”

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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.

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Louisville native set to make debut in Indianapolis 500

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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.

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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.



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Indianapolis, IN

IMPD: Man stabbed in downtown Indianapolis

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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.

Photo of IMPD investigating a stabbing at the intersection of East Market and North Delaware Streets on April 19, 2026, captured by a FOX59/CBS4 crew.

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.”

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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.

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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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