Quentin Porter, Jr. is accused of fatally shooting Malik Sims, whose body was discovered last week in Owen County.
(Courtesy, Owen County Sheriff's Office)
Authorities have arrested the suspected assailant in the killing of a Bloomington man whose body was found along a road in rural Owen County last week.
The Owen County Sheriff’s Office says deputies, assisted by Bloomington and Indianapolis Metropolitan police, took Quentin Porter, Jr., 25, of Bloomington into custody Wednesday on suspicion of killing Malik Sims, 23.
A passerby found Sims’ body on Stephenson Road on July 15. On Thursday, the sheriff’s office said an autopsy revealed Sims’ cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the head.
Porter is charged with murder and theft of a motor vehicle, online court records show.
The sheriff’s office has not said what it believes led to the shooting.
Malik Sims (Courtesy photo)
Details of the investigation
A probable cause affidavit filed Wednesday does not provide insight into Porter’s motives but shows investigators were able to identify him as the suspect by tracking down Sims’ stolen car.
Authorities spoke with a friend of Sims at the crime scene on July 15, who said he found Sims’ body using “Find My iPhone” software. The friend and Sims shared their locations with each other.
Police identified Sims’ car and tracked it traveling from Bloomington to Indianapolis on July 14. The car was located late July 16 on the northeast side of Indianapolis, parked at an address later discovered to belong to Porter’s grandmother.
Porter’s grandmother called Indianapolis Metropolitan police that same day to report Porter had stolen her car. Officers later found the grandmother’s car and detained Porter. However, the grandmother decided not to press charges, and police released Porter.
Police later executed a search warrant on the grandmother’s home, where Sims’ Audi was found parked outside. Porter was not at the home at the time.
The grandmother told police Porter arrived at the home about 11 p.m. on July 14. He was asked if the vehicle belonged to him and “he responded vaguely that ‘it was going to be his,’” the affidavit states.
Sims’ car was later taken in to be processed for evidence, and police found a large amount of blood inside.
“There were also signs of an attempted clean-up of the blood based upon traces of bleach found and areas on the interior that had been spray painted,” the affidavit states. “There were also seat covers placed over the car seats likely to conceal or cover the blood.”
Police also found a receipt in the car for the purchase of seat covers and duct tape from an O’Reilly Auto Parts in Indianapolis. Police obtained surveillance footage from the store, which showed a man matching a photo of Porter making the purchases early on July 15.
The last credit card digits on the receipt matched that of a card used to pay $400 to a towing service to get Sims’ car from the home of Porter’s grandmother to an auto repair shop in Bloomington.
A Bloomington police officer conducted a traffic stop on a rental car from Indianapolis, driven by a man later identified as Porter.
After being arrested Wednesday, Porter appeared for an initial hearing at Owen Circuit Court this afternoon, court records show.
A friend of Sims’ family, Nancy Hafer, described Sims in a Facebook post as “one of the kindest, sweetest and most respectful young men I’ve ever known.”
Owen County Sheriff Ryan White issued the following written statement:
“This is an example of what law enforcement can do when we work together. All the agencies involved have worked endlessly since we first received the call on July 15th. We put our resources together in one cohesive effort to bring justice for Malik. I cannot thank our partner agencies enough for their assistance with this case. We may not be a large agency with many resources, but we know we are never alone. Agencies like Bloomington Police Department, Indiana State Police, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police, and the Indiana Conservation Officers are always willing to lend a hand to serve the people of our community, and we are always willing to do the same for them.”
