Eugenio Roman

Eugenio Roman, a 52-year-old male, was killed on February 21, 2021, in a parking lot on the west side of Indianapolis. That evening, as Roman was leaving a business in the 5600 block of West 38th Street, a dark-colored SUV pulled up near his vehicle. Two individuals exited the SUV and fired multiple shots at Roman, who was found unresponsive with several gunshot wounds. After shooting him, the suspects searched his pockets and his vehicle before fleeing the scene.

The investigation into the murder of Eugenio Roman led detectives to review surveillance footage from a nearby business, which captured the events of that night. A significant breakthrough in the case came when Tavon Macklin, then 22 years old, was arrested days later in possession of a firearm. The Indianapolis Crime Gun Intelligence Center conducted an analysis and determined that the handgun found on Macklin was the same weapon used to kill Roman. Further investigation, including a search of Macklin's phone records, placed him in the same parking lot at the time of the murder.

Following a three-day trial in August 2023, Tavon Macklin was convicted of murder and unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon for his role in Eugenio Roman's death. The jury deliberated for just over an hour before returning a guilty verdict. In October 2023, Macklin was sentenced to 58 years in prison for the murder. At the time of his conviction and sentencing for Roman's death, Macklin was already incarcerated and facing separate charges for another murder and an officer-involved shooting that occurred in January and February of 2021.