Kyleigh Crane

 

 

Death penalty out in double slaying

Prosecutor will seek life without parole in Cumberland killings

Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry will seek a sentence of life without the possibility of parole for two Indianapolis men charged with murder in the deaths of a 7-year-old girl and her uncle.

Prosecutors allege Michael Bell and Jeremy Priel fatally shot Kyleigh Crane and Jeremy Crane, 21, during a Dec. 12 robbery at a Cumberland home.

Bell, 22, and Priel, 25, have pleaded not guilty and are being held without bail in the Marion County Jail.

Curry had considered seeking the death penalty for Bell and Priel but opted not to after studying the case.

"This office followed our established deliberative and thoughtful process," Curry said Monday in a prepared statement, "in making our decision to request life without parole against Michael Bell and Jeremy Priel."

The process included discussions with homicide detectives and consultation with family members of the victims, according to the prosecutor's office. Aggravating factors in the case, Curry said in the release, were that the murders occurred during a robbery and that Kyleigh was younger than 12.

Josh Crane, father of Kyleigh and brother of Jeremy, said family members agree with the prosecutor's decision.

"I just wanted to make sure they weren't going to see freedom," he said.

Investigators said Bell and Priel entered the home where Jeremy Crane lived to steal PlayStation and Xbox game systems. Bell's arrest came as a shock to the Crane family because he had been a close friend of Jeremy Crane's and had once lived with him.

Jeremy's mother found his and Kyleigh's bodies when she returned to her home from work. Jeremy lived in the home and was baby-sitting a visiting Kyleigh, who had stayed home from school on the day of their deaths because of illness.

The next court appearance for Bell and Priel is scheduled for Wednesday, and their trial is set for Feb. 27.

Kyleigh Crane

 

Cumberland double-murder suspect attacked by fellow inmates

A suspect arrested for the murders of a 7-year-old Cumberland girl and her 21-year-old uncle was recently attacked by other inmates, according to police.

A suspect arrested for the murders of a 7-year-old Cumberland girl and her 21-year-old uncle was recently attacked by other inmates, according to police.

Michael Bell, 22, is charged with murder, robbery and carrying a handgun without a license in connection with the Dec. 12 incident that killed Kyleigh and Jeremy Crane. 

According to officials, five inmates entered Bell's cell after the door had been popped open to let Bell's cellmate in Dec. 18. Surveillance video showed Terry Bates, Kobe Blake, Carlos Bryant, Andre Canady and Tony Miller tried to keep Bell inside of his cell.

Bell said he was able to get out of his cell and grabbed onto the railing in front of him. He said the suspects kept telling him to go back into his cell and proceeded to hit him in the head and face. Bell said he heard someone say "Don's Guns" during the alleged attack.  

Officers were able to subdue the suspects. Cameron Moore was also seen attacking Bell, according to police.

Bell suffered swelling and broken skin near his right eye and broken skin on his lower lip and gums. Bell told police he wanted to press charges. He will now be segregated from general population for his own protection.

Don's Guns owner Don Davis had offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction shortly after the double-murder.

Jeremy Priel, 25, is also charged in connection with the Crane murders. Bell maintains his innocence. 

Kyleigh Crane

 Docs reveal Crane murder confession

CUMBERLAND, Ind. (WISH) - Two men have been formally charged after the shooting deaths of 21-year-old Jeremy Crane and his 7-year-old niece, Kyleigh.

Michael Bell and Jeremy Priel are each facing two charges of murder, one charge of robbery and one charge of carrying a handgun without a license.

A lengthy court document now spells out the investigation into the murders, along with an evening request by Bell to speak to police to “confess.”

The two men continually appeared to point fingers at each other for the slayings. Priel told police in one interview he waited by a car wash area for Bell, who returned with a PlayStation and Xbox.

While in jail at 7 p.m. Monday, Bell requested to speak to police to offer a confession, court documents say. Bell began to tell police one story, but later changed it. Finally, he told police the plan was for Bell to knock on the door and ask Jeremy Crane if he could use the bathroom. Then, Priel was supposed to come in and rob everyone.

Bell described being in the bathroom when he said Jeremy Crane yelled for him to get out of the bathroom. When he did, Bell said Priel put a gun in his face and told him to get on the floor, according to the probable cause affidavit. Bell said Priel made everyone get on the ground, and then Priel shot Jeremy Crane. Due to his proximity, Bell said blood splattered on him.

Police explain in court documents that Bell’s knowledge of the crime scene was so detailed that he had to have been there. Bell said after Jeremy Crane was shot, Bell got up to gather the video game systems. He said Priel shot him again. Bell said he didn’t know how Kyleigh Crane was shot because he ran out of the house.

During the investigation, officers talked to multiple people who interacted with the accused men.
One witness told police Bell was in her home on the day of the deaths and was insistent about watching the news at 6 p.m., the probable cause affidavit says. When the story came on about the Cranes being found dead, the woman said Bell called them his “adopted brother” and “adopted niece.” Yet, she said Bell showed little or no emotion and did not cry.

Family members of the victims characterized Bell as a close family friend who once lived in their home.

A woman associated with Priel said she introduced Priel to Bell. She said Priel’s demeanor would change when he saw news coverage of the Cumberland murders, according to court documents. She also said Bell told Priel on the bus, “I laid my thing down and did what I had to do.” She was the same woman Bell requested throw away his jeans, despite her offers to clean them for him.

 Merry Christmas Kyleigh...

Kyleigh Crane

 Police tracked victim's items to 2 suspects

A discarded cellphone and a blood-stained video game console helped lead police to two men they think killed a Far-Eastside man and his 7-year-old niece.

The trail of evidence emerged in court documents released as Michael Bell, 22, and Jeremy Priel, 25, both of Indianapolis, appeared in court Tuesday. Marion Superior Court Judge Lisa Borges granted prosecutors' request for more time to prepare formal charges against the two men.

Priel and Bell said little during their appearances, offering "yes" and "no" answers and declining opportunities to ask the judge questions.

The men are scheduled to hear formal charges against them at 9 a.m. Thursday in Marion Superior Court. They remain in the Marion County Jail on preliminary charges of murder. Priel also faces a theft charge.

Bell and Priel are suspected in the Dec. 12 killings of Jeremy Crane, 21, and his niece Kyleigh Crane.

Their bodies were found in the home of Cathy Crane, Jeremy's mother and Kyleigh's grandmother, in the 600 block of Woodlark Drive near 10th Street and German Church Road.

The court documents provided new insight into how Cumberland Police Department detectives followed clues that led to Bell and Priel -- starting by tracing a Sprint cellphone that had belonged to Jeremy Crane.

A Lawrence Township woman told police that two men gave her the phone aboard an IndyGo bus on Dec. 12.

The woman first thought the men had accidentally dropped the phone, she told police. One of the men told her to keep it, according to the court documents.

Police corroborated the woman's story by obtaining the cellphone records and surveillance video from the bus. That narrowed their investigation to Bell and Priel, the court documents stated.

Police obtained additional evidence Sunday when two men went to the Cumberland Police Department. They told investigators they had seen news reports that two video game consoles -- an Xbox and a PlayStation 3 -- were missing from the Crane home after the slayings.

The men told police they had just purchased such consoles from Priel.

At the time they bought the items, the men said, the PlayStation appeared to have blood spots on it.
According to the court documents, they paid Priel $40 and an ounce of marijuana.

Bell and Priel were arrested Sunday. A 9 mm handgun confirmed to be the weapon used in the killings was found in the bedroom of a female acquaintance of Bell's, police said.

 GET SOME ROPE!!!

Kyleigh Crane

Cumberland murder suspects appear in court

INDIANAPOLIS -While family members still don't know why anyone would murder a seven-year-old girl and her uncle, police and the prosecutor's office say they know who is responsible.

Michael Bell and Jeremy Priel appeared in court Tuesday morning to face first degree murder charges. Kyleigh Crane, 7, and Jeremy Crane, 21, were found with fatal gunshot wounds in a Cumberland home on Dec 12.

Bell and Priel were not officially charged Tuesday. Instead, prosecutors asked for 72 hours to finish putting their case together.

Details about what happened in the hours and days following the murder emerged in court documents, which show how a cell phone and video from a IndyGo bus led investigators to their suspects.
Bell and Priel appeared in front of Judge Lisa Borges Tuesday morning, where they were advised of their rights.

According to court documents, investigators traced Jeremy Crane's cell phone to a woman who told police she was on a bus the day of the murders and a man had dropped the phone as he and another man were getting off an IndyGo Bus. When he came back onto the bus she advised him of that and he told her to keep it.

When police obtained video from that IndyGo bus, the video showed exactly what the woman told investigators had happened.

"Various types of surveillance tape, surveillance records, is a major part of the case and a major part of the investigation," said Denise Robison, Marion County Prosecutor's Office.

Police showed the same bus video to two men who told police they paid Priel $40 and an ounce of pot for an Xbox and PlayStation 3 last week. Those are the same video game systems police say Priel and Bell took after the murders. The court documents say "the PlayStation 3 appeared to have blood on it when they bought it."

The men who bought the video game systems told investigators they saw news coverage about the murders and then learned an Xbox and PlayStation 3 were missing from the murder scene. They then got suspicious and called investigators.

But the two men aren't the only ones to have seen the video game systems.

Priel's fiancée told police Bell and Priel had another black bag with them, but they never opened it. She also said Bell had a gift bag with a teddy bear inside it.

According to court documents, Bell asked the woman to throw away a pair of jeans for him because they were "messed up." Investigators say the woman offered to wash the jeans, but Bell insisted she throw them out. The documents also say that Priel told his girlfriend he thought Bell's jeans had blood on them.

The prosecutor's office is not talking about whether they'll ask for the death penalty for either suspect.
"The death penalty consideration or life without parole consideration is going to be a lengthier process," said Denise Robinson, Marion County prosecutor's office.

Formal murder charges against both men are expected to be filed Wednesday afternoon. Both Bell and Priel are scheduled to be back in court Thursday morning at 9:00 am.

Case background: 

Michael Bell was a close friend of the family. The younger children in the family called him "uncle." Jeremy Crane's mother says her family was stunned by Bell's arrest.

The arrests trace back to reports of stolen weapons and a cell phone.

The gun used in the execution style killings of Kyleigh Crane and her uncle Jeremy is now in the hands of police.

Investigators have confirmed it's a match, but a northwest side gun dealer is providing a little more detail.

"I can tell you this: They got the gun, the gun got blood on it," said Don Davis of Don's Guns.

13 Investigates has also learned it's possibly one of two semi automatic weapons reportedly stolen a day before the murders.

But it wasn't until Friday, four days after the killings that a 42-year-old Indianapolis woman reported two C-9 millimeter firearms missing. She also named a 22-year-old suspect.

Read the probable cause affidavit

 

Kyleigh Crane

Prosecutors want time in slayings case

The two men suspected in the shooting deaths of Kyleigh Crane, 7, and her uncle Jeremy Crane, 21, are scheduled to appear in court today, when prosecutors will seek a 72-hour continuance in their case.

Jeremy Priel, 25, and Michael Bell, 22, are being held on suspicion of murder charges. Priel also is suspected of theft in the case.

Marion County prosecutors are seeking the continuance to give them more time to file formal charges against Bell and Priel. Investigators are still gathering evidence in the case, said Brienne Delaney, a spokeswoman for Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry.

The victims' bodies were discovered Dec. 12 in the home of Cathy Crane, Jeremy's mother and Kyleigh's grandmother. The home is in the 600 block of Woodlark Drive, near 10th Street and German Church Road.

Cumberland police are handling the investigation. They are not releasing a motive or details, though earlier police reports indicated the killer or killers might have stolen electronics from the home, specifically an Xbox video game console, a PlayStation console and a Sprint cellphone.

 http://www.indystar.com/article/20111220/LOCAL18/312200007/1001/NEWS

Kyleigh Crane

Two Indianapolis men are now isolated behind bars, awaiting formal murder charges in the deaths of a seven-year-old Cumberland girl and her uncle. The arrests now trace back to reports of stolen weapons and a cell phone.

The gun used in the execution style killings of seven-year-old Kyleigh Crane and her uncle Jeremy is now in the hands of police.

Investigators have confirmed it's a match, but a northwest side gun dealer is providing a little more detail.

"I can tell you this: They got the gun, the gun got blood on it," said Don Davis of Don's Guns.
13 Investigates has also learned it's possibly one of two semi automatic weapons reportedly stolen a day before the murders.

But it wasn't until Friday, four days after the killings that a 42-year-old Indianapolis woman reported two C-9 millimeter firearms missing. She also named a 22-year-old suspect.

It turns out that one of the murder suspects awaiting charges is a 22-year-old with the same birth date, Michael Bell.

"We actually had pictures and the whole nine yards beforehand. We knew who we were going after, it was just a matter of putting the puzzles together," revealed Marion County Sheriff John Layton.

Cumberland Police had also tracked down something taken from Jeremy Crane: his cell phone.

"They got the cell phone, they got the gun with blood, they got the lady that had possession of the gun," Davis said, pleased with the quick action of investigators.

Then early Saturday, a phone call to the gun dealer who promised "ten stacks" or $10,000 to the person with information leading to an arrest.

"He said, 'I know who did it,'" Davis said, recalling the urgent phone call.

At 1:00 pm, Don Davis, along with a Cumberland homicide investigator and Marion County Sheriff Layton, met with the informant.

"He said he was going to talk to Michael Bell and try to tell him to come in and turn himself in, because they knew who he was," Davis said, speaking about the informant's promise.

"There was no doubt in my mind. It was very informative who these people were and what was going on," Sheriff Layton said describing the level of knowledge the informant shared.

At 2:00 am Sunday, Michael Bell turned himself in.

Hours later, a SWAT team surrounded a unit in the Amberwood Apartments and took 25-year-old Jeremy Priel into custody too.

Sheriff Layton credits good police work, but says law enforcement always needs witnesses to speak up.

"At times when there is tragedy like this they stay quiet about anything they know. Sometimes it takes money, but sometimes it takes heart to get these people behind bars where they belong so they can't hurt anybody else," said Layton.

Don Davis won't say whether he paid the $10,000 reward.

Bell and Priel are both expected in court Tuesday. That's when the prosecutor's office will ask for a 72-hour hold with plans of filing formal charges later in the week.

Kyleigh Crane

 

Brother of young murder victim asks questions

INDIANAPOLIS 

The younger brother of a girl killed in an east side home is asking questions about how a family friend could allegedly commit such an act.

The mother of seven-year-old Kyleigh Crane asked Eyewitness News to talk with her son, five-year-old Brayden, about the murders that left his sister and uncle dead. He is the one family member who has said nothing about the crimes, but is just old enough to understand that people he loves are never coming back and why.

"Why would you do such a thing?" Brayden asked of 22-year-old suspect Michael Bell. "You loved me and Kyleigh. You used to play with us. You was nice to us."

Now, Bell and 25-year-old Jeremy Priel are behind bars, accused of murdering Brayden's sister and his 21-year-old uncle, Jeremy. The Crane family says they don't know Priel, but Bell was once like family to them. He was Jeremy Crane's best friend and trusted by Kyleigh and Brayden.

"He was our uncle, too. He was one of our uncles," Brayden said.

"My kids talked about him all the time. I heard 'Uncle Mike. Uncle Mike. Uncle Mike'," said Holly Wilson, Brayden and Kyleigh's mother. "Kyleigh would color him pictures and he'd play with them."

According to the Cranes, Jeremy Crane and Bell played football together at Warren Central High School and Bell even lived with the Cranes up until about two months ago, when he lost his job and abruptly took his stuff and left.

"Nobody really knows. He never said why he left. He just left," Holly Wilson said.

The Cranes say when Bell was charged with rape and went to trial in 2007, Jeremy Crane was at the trial every day supporting his best friend. Now, the family waits to hear what the man who was Jeremy's best friend and Priel told police about the day Jeremy and Kyleigh died.

For little Brayden Crane, who's just old enough to understand his sister and uncle are never coming back and why, there are not enough answers to the one question he wants to ask Bell, a man he once loved and trusted.

"Why did you do that?" he asked.

The Video:

MURDERERS:

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Newly Edited Article: A Little More Information

INDIANAPOLIS - The younger brother of a girl killed in an east side home is asking questions about how a family friend could allegedly commit such an act.

The mother of seven-year-old Kyleigh Crane asked Eyewitness News to talk with her son, five-year-old Brayden, about the murders that left his sister and uncle dead. He is the one family member who has said nothing about the crimes, but is just old enough to understand that people he loves are never coming back and why.

"Why would you do such a thing?" Brayden asked of 22-year-old suspect Michael Bell. "You loved me and Kyleigh. You used to play with us. You was nice to us."

Now, Bell and 25-year-old Jeremy Priel are behind bars, accused of murdering Brayden's sister and his 21-year-old uncle, Jeremy. The Crane family says they don't know Priel, but Bell was once like family to them. He was Jeremy Crane's best friend and trusted by Kyleigh and Brayden.

"He was our uncle, too. He was one of our uncles," Brayden said.

"My kids talked about him all the time. I heard 'Uncle Mike. Uncle Mike. Uncle Mike'," said Holly Wilson, Brayden and Kyleigh's mother. "Kyleigh would color him pictures and he'd play with them."
According to the Cranes, Jeremy Crane and Bell played football together at Warren Central High School and Bell even lived with the Cranes up until about two months ago, when he lost his job and abruptly took his stuff and left.

"Nobody really knows. He never said why he left. He just left," Holly Wilson said.

The Cranes say when Bell was charged with rape and went to trial in 2007, Jeremy Crane was at the trial every day supporting his best friend. Now, the family waits to hear what the man who was Jeremy's best friend and Priel told police about the day Jeremy and Kyleigh died.

For little Brayden Crane, who's just old enough to understand his sister and uncle are never coming back and why, there are not enough answers to the one question he wants to ask Bell, a man he once loved and trusted.

"Why did you do that?" he asked.

That is a question that may never be answered completely. A question Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry will have to deal with in detail - Is this a death penalty case?

"Clearly, there are circumstances here that would qualify," Curry said Monday.

But the decision is not going to be made easily.

"When we took office, we put into place a review process for any case that qualifies for life without parole or death penalty consideration," Curry said. "We set up a review process where we have a committee within the office who will review the circumstances of those cases and make a determination down the road."

It's a decision the family is still poring over.

"We as a family are going to sit down and we are going to contemplate that," said Kyleigh's father Josh Crane.

"Me, as being Kyleigh's mother, I would think that I would want something like...like, I would have so much hurt, that I would want them, you know, but I was raised different than that. I grew up in a religious home and I don't believe two wrongs make a right," Wilson said Sunday.

Kyleigh Crane

CUMBERLAND

Two Indianapolis men are in custody facing charges in connection with the murders of a seven year old girl and her uncle.

Police were extremely aggressive with this investigation and over the weekend they served multiple search warrants. Their first major break in the case came early Sunday morning when 22-year-old Michael Bell Junior surrendered to police.

Later in the morning, the SWAT team surrounded a home in an east side apartment complex where they took 25-year-old Jeremy Priel into custody. Neighbor Victoria Knox witnessed the incident."I woke up and there was the SWAT team in the front and the SWAT team in the back. I don't know what happened they just arrested him and took him off," said Knox.

Both of the arrests came on the same day the family laid 7-year-old Kyleigh and 21-year-old Jeremy Crane to rest.

The family is both relieved and hurt by the news.

Bell was described as being a close family friend of the Cranes and had grown up with Jeremy.
Neighbors are also expressing relief at the arrests and say they pray for some peace for the family.

In addition to both arrests, investigators also recovered a weapon, a handgun they believe Bell had stolen the day before the murders.

Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry is asking for a 72 hour hold for both suspects but expects to file formal murder charges later this week. He says they are still hoping to interview additional people but they have no reason to believe anyone else was involved.

There has been some suggestion about seeking the death penalty in this case. Indiana law describes circumstances where such a penalty can be sought. This crime does satisfy some of those conditions though no decision has been made.

Vigils have been held all week for the young victims as the community mourns their deaths and struggles to make sense of what happened. Jeremy and Kyleigh Crane were laid to rest Saturday.

MURDERERS: