I have following the story for a very long time, and I finally am blogging about it:
A man and woman who lived in an Indianapolis house that exploded in November killing two neighbors and damaging scores of homes, have been charged with felony murder and multiple counts of arson for allegedly blowing up the home, prosecutors said.
Monserrate Shirley and Mark Leonard, who lived in the home that exploded, and Leonard’s brother, Bob Leonard Jr., were charged on Thursday in connection with the explosion and arrested on Friday, authorities said.
The personal property insurance on the home had been raised recently to $304,000 and photographs and personal financial records removed before the explosion, prosecutors allege.
The three face murder charges in the deaths of neighbors Jennifer and John Longworth and multiple other charges for the injuries to 12 other area residents in the blast and for the 33 neighborhood homes that had to be demolished, Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry told a news conference.
This was a “thoroughly senseless act” that cost the lives of two young people, Curry said.
Investigators believe a programmable microwave that exploded from the inside out was the source of ignition and valves that regulate natural gas into the home and to a fireplace were removed, allowing gas to build up over hours, Curry said.
Authorities are still working to determine whether others were involved.
The three suspects are expected to appear in court Monday morning.
via Indianapolis home explosion: 3 charged with murder – chicagotribune.com.
When this originally happened, I had said that money was behind it all and I was correct. This was a tragic event and is what happens when greed gets the best of people. I believe, however, that they might not have thought that this much damage would be done, and that maybe a small explosion would happen and the house would just have burned. However, I also tend to believe that some sort of high-power explosive was used as well, and not just natural gas. I could be wrong about that though.
Either way, it is a sad situation, that people were only thinking of collecting an insurance policy and not thinking about the fact that other people in the neighborhood could have been, and were, ultimately killed. It just shows you where our society has gone nowadays. Unlike some, I will not use this tragic event to put a “Christian” shine or spin on this. But rather, I will simply say that I hope that the people who pulled this little morbid stunt, get the justice that they, and the families who were affected by it do truly deserve.