On February 3, 2020, authorities in Kokomo, Indiana, responded to a report of shots fired at a residence on South Cortland Avenue, a call that would uncover a sprawling and violent series of crimes. Upon arrival, officers discovered the body of 25-year-old Lashay R. Young-Beard, a Black female, lying in the backyard of the property. She had suffered a fatal gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene.
While securing the area, investigators entered the home and found a terrifying scene inside: a 24-year-old man was bound with duct tape and tied up in a bathtub. The survivor, whose identity was withheld for his safety, told police he had been held captive for 11 days, during which he was beaten, whipped, and burned with boiling water by his captors.
The investigation quickly unraveled a disturbing pattern of violence orchestrated by a local group. Evidence recovered, including video footage from a suspect's phone, revealed that the torture of the man in the bathtub was not an isolated incident. The footage depicted other victims being confined, stripped, beaten, and held at gunpoint in separate incidents dating back to the fall of 2019. This discovery led to a widening of the probe, implicating several individuals in a ring of kidnapping and torture that operated out of multiple locations in the city.
Police swiftly moved to arrest those believed to be responsible. Troy Lamar Wilson, identified by victims as a ringleader, was arrested and charged with criminal confinement and aggravated battery. In June 2020, authorities formally charged Uriah M. Levy with the murder of Young-Beard; he had initially been held on confinement and battery charges similar to Wilson. A third man, Steven B. Allen, was arrested for aiding and inducing criminal confinement. As the investigation deepened, additional suspects—including Jamie A. Travis, Amanda Bogue, and Brittany Causey—were apprehended and charged in connection with the torture and confinement of other victims identified in the video evidence.
Legal proceedings stretched over several years as prosecutors built their cases against the various defendants. In August 2025, Troy Lamar Wilson was sentenced to 42 years in the Indiana Department of Correction after pleading guilty to criminal confinement and aggravated battery in two separate cases. Brittany Causey pleaded guilty to confinement and battery charges in 2021, while Jamie Travis entered a guilty plea for aggravated battery and criminal confinement in early 2025. Uriah M. Levy, facing the most serious charge for the death of Young-Beard, was scheduled to stand trial for murder in October 2025.
