On a late Tuesday evening in Indianapolis, what began as an alleged shoplifting incident at a Speedway gas station escalated into a fatal shooting that claimed the life of 49-year-old Damon McClain. The Black male's death on June 29, 2021, led to the arrest and subsequent conviction of the gas station clerk who followed him out of the store.
The tragic events unfolded just before 11:30 p.m. at the Speedway located in the 4900 block of East 56th Street.
Surveillance footage from inside the store showed McClain placing several cases of Red Bull into a plastic bag before exiting without paying. Vincent Bibbs, the 49-year-old clerk on duty, was seen following McClain out of the establishment.
According to court documents and witness accounts, Bibbs confronted McClain in the parking lot. One witness reported hearing someone yell, 'Just give it back,' followed by a single gunshot. Another witness saw a man, identified as Bibbs, approach the driver's side of McClain's vehicle and fire a pistol. Responding officers found McClain unresponsive in his car with a gunshot wound to his head; he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Initially, Bibbs denied any involvement in the shooting. However, he later admitted to police that he had followed McClain outside and that his gun had gone off during a struggle. Bibbs was arrested and charged with murder and carrying a handgun without a license.
Following a jury trial, Vincent Bibbs was convicted of murder and carrying a handgun without a license. He was subsequently sentenced to fifty-five years in the Indiana Department of Correction. An appeal of his conviction was later denied, affirming the court's original decision.
