Veronica Jean Cica, a 22-year-old White woman and mother of two, was shot and killed in her Battle Creek, Michigan, home in a violent attack that also claimed the life of her father. The loss was described by a family friend as unimaginable, leaving Veronica's children without their mother and Steven's wife and other children without a husband and father.
The tragedy unfolded around 6 p.m. on Saturday, December 16, 2023, at a residence on Algonquin Street.
A 911 call was placed from inside the home reporting that someone was trying to break in. While the caller was on the line, the dispatcher heard the sound of gunshots. When Battle Creek police officers arrived, they found Veronica inside, deceased from gunshot wounds. Her father, 44-year-old Steven Douglas Cica, was also found with gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a hospital in critical condition but died from his injuries the following day. Several children were present in the home during the shooting but were not physically harmed.
Just two hours before the fatal shooting, police had been called to the same address for a vandalism complaint involving the man who would be identified as the suspect, but he had left before they arrived. Investigators named Veronica’s former partner, 22-year-old Todd Edward Bolden Jr., as the suspect. Authorities confirmed that Bolden was the father of Veronica's child. The day after the shooting, on December 17, 2023, Bolden voluntarily turned himself in to the police.
Bolden was arrested and taken to the Calhoun County Jail. He was initially charged with two counts of open murder and one count of carrying a firearm in the commission of a crime. During his arraignment on December 18, he pleaded not guilty and was denied bond. In January 2026, a jury found Todd Bolden Jr., then 25, guilty of all five charges against him: two counts of murder, two counts of felony firearm, and home invasion. His sentencing was scheduled for March 2, 2026.
