On the evening of October 22, 2020, Walter Tony Stein Jr., a 30-year-old male, was fatally shot outside a Marathon gas station on the northwest side of Indianapolis. The incident, which stemmed from a gambling dispute, cut his life short and led to a lengthy investigation. First responders found Stein with multiple gunshot wounds and transported him to IU Health Methodist Hospital in critical condition, but he succumbed to his injuries shortly after arrival.
The investigation revealed
that Stein had been running a game involving raffle tickets in the gas station's parking lot. Brandon McCormick, then 23, had participated in the game and lost over $1,000, leading to a heated confrontation between the two men. Witnesses reported that McCormick had made threats in the hours leading up to the shooting. Surveillance footage from the gas station placed McCormick at the scene of the crime, corroborating witness accounts.
Detectives worked for more than four months before arresting McCormick. The evidence against him was substantial. Ballistic analysis connected him to the shooting; three FN 5.7x28mm fired cartridge casings were recovered from the scene, and a tip of a 5.7 bullet was found in Stein's body during the autopsy. Searches of McCormick's car and his mother's residence uncovered firearms and ammunition that matched those used in the killing. Further implicating him were phone calls he made from the Marion County Jail in which he hinted at his involvement.
Following a two-day trial in December 2022, a jury found Brandon McCormick guilty of murder. In January 2023, he was sentenced to 60 years in total, with 55 years to be served in the Indiana Department of Correction and an additional five years suspended to probation.
