Docs: Parke home invasion left victim with fractured skull

PARKE COUNTY, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — Court documents filed in the Parke County case against an Indianapolis man are revealing more details about a home invasion that caused a resident to be flown to an Indianapolis hospital for treatment of his injuries.

According to investigating deputies, the April 24 incident at a residence on County Road 500 N in Parke County left the resident with a fractured skull, a broken arm, and several cuts to his head.

The man later arrested and charged with burglary, armed robbery, and auto theft in relation to the incident is Jayden T. Smith, 19, of Indianapolis. Smith reportedly faces several unrelated charges in Marion County where he was arrested last weekend.

A probable cause affidavit filed in the case shows that the victim told law enforcement he had been laying in bed watching television when he heard a noise in his home. When the victim entered the hallway outside the bedroom he came face to face with a man. The victim said the darkness didn’t allow him to see the man’s face, and suddenly he was struck on the head with an object.

The victim said the attacker continued to strike him as he fell to the ground. The attacker reportedly then took the victims wallet and left the home.

Investigating deputies located shoe prints where the garage door had been kicked in, and noted that the door between the home and the garage had also been kicked in. The deputy investigating the attack noted a large amount of blood in the home stretching through multiple rooms.

Deputies also learned a short time after the attack a vehicle was reported stolen from the nearby town of Montezuma. Video evidence in that case led police to Smith. Deputies said the shoes that Smith was wearing in the video matched the tread pattern found at the home invasion scene.

Four days after the attack, the stolen vehicle was located in Gary, Indiana. A search of that vehicle by Indiana State Police reportedly turned up a receipt that had been in the victim’s wallet the night of the attack.

A charge made to one of the victim’s debit cards led police to security footage from a Love’s Truck Stop gas station in Demotte, Indiana where Smith was reportedly seen purchasing items using the debit card.

Investigating deputies said during that transaction, Smith was seen driving a vehicle that had been reported stolen out of Gary, Indiana. That vehicle was later recovered in Indianapolis, where a birthday card addressed to Smith was located inside.

Court records show that Smith faces the following charges in Parke County;

• Burglary with serious bodily injury | level 1 felony
• Armed robbery | level 3 felony
• Auto theft | level 6 felony

Parke County Judge Samuel A. Swalm set Smith’s bond at $100,000 with no 10% allowed.

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