Anthony Wayne Carter
An Indianapolis man accused of shooting his girlfriend in the head and then smothering her to death has been formally charged with murder.
Anthony W. Carter, 49, of 3018 E. Raymond St., Indianapolis, was arrested for the April 16 killing of Ashley E. Neville, 40, at a home Neville occupied within the 500 block of East County Road 650S.
The probable cause affidavit filed in the case states that in the early morning hours of April 16, a woman who identified herself as Carter’s daughter called 911 to report her father had just told her he had killed Neville. After a computer check brought up a no contact order regarding the two, deputies went to Neville’s address to check on her welfare.
There was no answer after officers repeatedly knocked on the door. Moments later, the deputies found most windows covered up, a padlock securing the front door and a brown book case blocking entry through a back door, according to the affidavit.
However, they were told an abandoned car was found in a field near the intersection of State Road 11 and County Road 800S. The red 2015 Chevrolet Cruze was not registered to either Carter nor Neville, but Neville was known to drive it, according to the affidavit.
Deputies contacted the owner of the County Road 650S residence and did a cursory search but did not locate her, according to investigators.
Early that afternoon, neighbors reported seeing a suspicious male in a wooded area near the victim’s home. A perimeter was established and a police dog was called in to assist with the search. The K9 was instrumental in locating Carter, who was taken into custody without incident, according to the affidavit.
During questioning in Columbus, Carter first claimed Neville originally had the gun and he didn’t know if it was loaded. He told investigators the weapon fired and struck the victim while he was attempting to grab it away from her, according to the affidavit.
Then, Carter told detectives he “wanted to end her suffering” by putting a plastic bag around Neville’s head and using duct tape to secure it. The defendant said he then placed his hand over the victim’s mouth to smother her, according to the probable cause affidavit.
Later in the interview, Carter said he had been driving the compact car that he abandoned in a field where it was found, the affidavit states. The vehicle is registered to an individual named Jeffery Barr.
A search warrant was obtained for the County Road 650S house and Neville was located in the bedroom in the northeast corner of the residence, found on a bed covered by a large pile of clothing and other items, court documents state.
An autopsy reveled that Neville suffered a gunshot wound to the left side of her head, court documents state.
The following day, Carter told investigators the murder weapon was a small pistol, and that he had discarded it within the woods south of the victim’s residence, court documents state. But while the defendant was accompanying deputies searching for the weapon, Carter told Abner that the victim never had the gun. Instead, he admitted bringing the gun into the bedroom where the shooting occurred, the probable cause affidavit states.
He also gave the detective a more precise location where the murder weapon was, which was then recovered.
While Carter’s legal address is in Indianapolis, he had been living with Neville for about a year, a family member said. Their living arrangement defies a no contact order issued at Neville’s request against Carter by a Jennings County judge on Feb. 22, 2022.
The no contact order was made after Carter pleaded guilty to an act of intimidation against Neville as a Level 6 felony, and received a suspended 628-day sentence. Jennings County Prosecutor Brian Belding has already filed paperwork this week to revoke Carter’s probation.
The local case has been assigned to Bartholomew Superior Court 1 Judge James Worton, county Prosecutor Lindsay Holden-Kay said.
“Judge Worton has ordered that the defendant be held in custody without bond,” Holden-Kay said. “Pursuant to Indiana law, murder is punishable by 45-65 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.”
Carter was informed of the formal charge against him at 10:30 a.m. Friday in the Bartholomew County Jail , according to Detective Dane Duke, sheriff’s department spokesman.
