In the summer of 2020, a planned meeting for an online sale turned into a fatal encounter for 25-year-old Yasar Jamal Oliver Burnett Jr. in Indianapolis. On July 28, Burnett and his brother arranged to purchase two cellphones through an online marketplace app, OfferUp. The seller, using a fake profile, directed them to a location near Adams Street and 21st Street. When the brothers arrived and felt the situation was unsettling, they attempted to leave.
At that moment, their vehicle was blocked by another car. A man emerged and opened fire into the brothers' vehicle. Yasar Jamal Oliver Burnett Jr. was killed in the shooting, and his brother sustained serious injuries.
The subsequent investigation into the armed robbery and homicide led police to identify Demetrius Campbell and his co-conspirator, Angel Montano, as the individuals behind the scheme. Authorities discovered that Campbell had orchestrated a series of armed robberies by luring victims through fake online advertisements. Montano was identified as the shooter in the incident that led to Burnett's death. Both men were apprehended and faced legal proceedings. For his role in the crimes, Angel Montano was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison. Demetrius Campbell was convicted and received a 50-year prison sentence for his involvement in the robbery conspiracy and Burnett's murder.
In a separate and unrelated incident in the spring of 2024, a man also identified as 25-year-old Yasar Jamal Oliver Burnett Jr. lost his life to gun violence in Indianapolis. On the afternoon of May 6, police responded to a report of a single-car crash on the south side of the city. Upon arrival, they discovered the driver, Burnett, suffering from gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators treated the case as a homicide and were able to identify a 26-year-old male as a suspect in Burnett's death. This individual was also linked to another fatal shooting that had occurred in April of the same year. The suspect was arrested and taken into custody. At the time of his arrest for Burnett's murder, he was already being held on preliminary charges for the other homicide. The Marion County Prosecutor's Office will make the final charging decisions in the case.
