Valentine's Day murderer pleads guilty [Goshen News, Ind.]

Jan. 12—GOSHEN — A Goshen man plead guilty to murder, but also mentally ill, during Elkhart County Superior Court proceedings Thursday.

Samuel Byfield, 23, was charged in the murder of Wayne Bontrager, owner of Bontrager's Meadowlark Cars which took place Feb. 14, 2022. According to court documents, Byfield was test-driving one of Bontrager's vehicles in the area of C.R. 26, east of C.R. 22, when the two got into an altercation which resulted in Byfield pulling Bontrager, 73, Goshen, from the vehicle and attacking him with a knife.

Following the stabbing, Byfield reportedly got back into the car and proceeded east on C.R. 26 before eventually crashing in the area of C.R. 33 and C.R. 20. He then fled on foot into a nearby wooded area where he was tracked and eventually apprehended by police, according to the report. Bontrager was hospitalized but died of his injuries Feb. 22, 2022.

The plea agreement submitted by Byfield's attorneys agrees to 55 years at the Indiana Department of Corrections, payment of restitution to the victim and to the business' insurance company, and would dismiss the Count 2 robbery he was also facing for the same incident.

His sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 9.

RYAN MILLER

An Elkhart man received a public defender in his burglary case Thursday. Ryan Miller charged with burglary and false informing from an incident Jan. 7.

According to a police report, officers responded to the burglary in progress at 116 W. Bristol St., at 2:45 p.m. The owner of the home had watched on camera as a man kicked the door open on the east side of the building.

Miller was found in the basement, hiding behind a desk. Once handcuffed and outside, the man told officers his name was Jim Taylor, however, a system check to find an individual under that name with the birthdate provided was unsuccessful. When asked if he lied due to outstanding warrants, the man confirmed and then identified himself as Ryan Miller, 39, Elkhart. At the time, Miller had a county warrant for battery resulting in moderate bodily injury from Jan. 10, 2022.

Inside a backpack that had been in Miller's possession, officers also found two bottles of alcohol which the owner of the home claimed were from his bar and were worth $1,500 combined, according to the affidavit. Officers also reported finding a cut catalytic converter, which the owner said was not from any of his vehicles.

Miller's pretrial conference is scheduled for Feb. 9, omnibus date for March 9, the trial status conference for June 15, and a trial is scheduled for July 10.

SHONTERA WILSON

A woman who was already facing charges returned to the court for additional charges related to a new case.

Shontera Wilson, 28, Goshen, who is charged with a March 9 armed robbery alongside Brett Birdsall, 29, was arrested on charges of theft, false informing, possession and shoplifting Jan. 9 after officers say a Walmart associate witnessed her fail to check out on $344.80 worth of merchandise. The officer's report also indicated that Wilson identified herself to police at "Amanda Howard," of Arizona. After being placed into the squad car, the officer said Wilson admitted that she'd given him a fake name and told him she did so because she knew she had warrants and was hoping he would only cite and release her if she'd used a fake name, but Wilson had been previously accused of trespass at Walmart, 2304 Lincolnway East, Goshen, Aug. 12, 2022, and had an active warrant related to the armed robbery case.

According to a probable cause affidavit for the March 9 case, the victim, James Kephart, called police reporting that he'd been stabbed in the 200 block of State Street in Elkhart. Upon arrival, police at the scene noticed two individuals in the area "acting suspicious and looking back toward the location of the victim."

Wilson, who had blood at the base of her pinky, and Birdsall, who had blood dripping from his hands at the time, were detained by officers. Wilson also reportedly falsely identified herself as her sister, and officers said they found three knives, a glass pipe, a wallet with Kephart's documents, and what they believed to be meth, on her.

Kephart reportedly told police he'd been using illegal drugs with Wilson and Birdsall and a conversation of sexual nature occurred before the three broke into a garage at 209 State St., where Birdsall allegedly pulled a knife and demanded money from Kephart. A scuffle ensued during which Kephart was stabbed and his wallet was stolen.

According to court documents, Birdsall and Wilson left the scene and both denied any involvement in the robbery, but admitted they'd been in contact with Kephart earlier, with Wilson stating that he'd found the wallet on the ground and picked it up knowing nothing about the stabbing or robbery. Birdsall stated in the court documents that he had been in the garage but that Kephart had attacked him with a knife instead and the wallet fell out of his pocket and was then picked up.

Wilson's pretrial status conference is scheduled for Feb. 9, omnibus date for March 9, trial status conference for June 15, jury or bench trial depending which charges, if any go to trial, for July 10.

JAKE BRUNETTE

A man accused of stabbing and killing a person at Monarch Mobile Home Park in Elkhart is expected to stand trial Feb. 6.

Jake Brunette, 26, is charged with killing Andrew Conley, 23, Nov. 17, 2021, after police responded to a call from a man who'd said he'd been stabbed during a fight at Monarch Mobile Home Park in the 2300 block of Cassopolis Street around 7:55 a.m. After giving him first aid at the scene, medics began transporting the man to a local hospital, but he died en route.

Brunette received the results of his competency evaluations in December, which confirmed that he met the minimum competency requirements to stand trial.

The jury trial remains scheduled for Feb. 6, after a pretrial status conference Thursday morning, although public defender Matthew Johnson requested an additional pretrial status conference Feb. 2 ahead of the trial date.

KENYA L. JONES

An Elkhart teen, who was waived to adult court, had an initial hearing Thursday morning for a robbery police say she was involved in.

Kenya Jones, 15, is charged with robbery, resisting law enforcement, and battery against a public safety official from an Oct. 10 incident that occurred at Bashor Children's Home around 10:30 a.m.

According to police, Jones and two other girls — ages 16 and 15 — battered an employee of Bashor Children's Home, punching her and kicking her several times before stealing her keys and running away from campus without permission. The trio was located by deputies in the area of C.R. 30 and C.R. 15 a few hours later and resisted law enforcement punching and kicking them as well, according to police reports.

During Thursday's proceedings, Jones was deemed indigent and offered the services of a public defender. Her pretrial conference is scheduled for Feb. 9, with an omnibus date of March 9, trial status conference on June 15, and jury trial scheduled for July 10.

JONATHAN MORA JUAREZ

One half of a duo accused of accused of threatening and robbing David Franklin Jr. and also possession of marijuana Dec. 2, also met with the court Thursday.

Jonathan Mora Juarez, who appeared in court, and co-defendant Andres Castro, both 25, are accused of threatening and robbing Franklin, plus possession of marijuana.

The duo are accused of taking Franklin's wallet, cell phone, and black backpack while at Island Park, and threatening him with a gun, according to a charging affidavit. Franklin reported the incident directly to the police department, while two witnesses also called from their office and reported seeing the robbery as it occurred. One witness took a photo of the subjects running away while another witness apparently got in his car and followed the two suspects, who reportedly got into a vehicle and drove to and parked near a few shipping containers at Walmart and began going through the nearby property.

The affidavit indicates, officers eventually apprehended Castro and Juarez, who matched the photographs, near Burger King and located items stolen from Franklin, along with a jar containing 26 grams of marijuana and a 9mm handgun.

During Thursday's proceedings, Juarez withdrew his request for the scheduled bond hearing. Juarez's trial status conference is scheduled for May 11, and the trial is scheduled for June 10.

JOHN BRANDON COX

A man accused of a shooting at Ox Bow Park also indicated he wouldn't be asking for a bail review hearing Thursday.

Brandon John Cox, 35, is accused of shooting a woman in the head in Ox Bow Park Nov. 21 and is facing an attempted murder charge and robbery.

The victim, who remains unnamed, was interviewed by officers at the hospital. There, according to a police affidavit, she told officers that she and Cox had recently met for the first time in person after getting to know each other via Facebook. The victim also told officers that Cox's legal name was "Taylor" although he goes by "Brandon" or "John" as well.

The victim told police that prior to the shooting, the two of them had driven to Ox Bow Park when they got into an argument. During the argument, Cox, according to police, produced a handgun and placed it against her head, calling her an epithet before shooting her in the head, pulling her from the car, and taking her vehicle. Later, she identified Cox from a six-person lineup, the affidavit reads.

The victim also advised that she and Cox had stolen a guitar and sold it to Worldwide Pawn in Elkhart earlier in the day, according to the affidavit. The pawn shop confirmed the sale and the presence of both individuals at 1:32 p.m. on the day of the shooting, court documents reveal.

Public defender Matthew Johnson told the court that they're still awaiting discovery in the case, and a trial status conference remains scheduled for May 11, and a jury trial is scheduled for June 5.

MORGAN CARLSON

An individual from a separate group of robbery suspects plead guilty during Thursday's court proceedings. Morgan Carlson, 22, is charged with being part of an armed robbery that took place at Ashton Pines Apartments Oct. 6, 2020.

The victim told police he met Carlson on SnapChat and they agreed to meet for dinner. In the parking lot where they met, Carlson asked for assistance with her car, stating that it wasn't running right. While he was looking at the car, two men approached on foot and robbed him at gunpoint taking his stainless steel gold chain, his wallet, his phone, and money from the glove compartment of his car. Then Carlson and the men got into her car and left. The victim also stated there was another women in the car who never got out, later identified as Jazmine Jordan.

A video of the incident was provided by a neighbor in the apartment complex, confirming that the four individuals arrived together in the car, and the men left, to return later for the armed robbery.

During conversations that officers listened to after Blake was incarcerated on outstanding warrants, Blake commented made comments to Carlson indicating they'd traveled up from Indianapolis, and that the guns were bb guns.

As Carlson recounted the events, she told the court that at the time, she and Blake were dating and she was seven months pregnant.

Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 23.

JESSIE HARADON

One of two men accused of an attempted carjacking attended circuit court for a trial status conference Thursday.

Jessie Haradon, 40, along with Joseph Thompson, 37, are charged with attempted robbery, battery, theft, resisting law enforcement, and impersonating a public servant July 5. According to Goshen city officers, they were dispatched to Wal-Mart, 2304 Lincolnway East, at 5:56 p.m. to investigate a car theft in progress.

There, they found Alan Bautista, 18, who reported being the victim of the attempted carjacking, during which he was battered and suffered a minor scrape to his arm that did not require medical attention. He told officers that Thompson and Haradon had also impersonated police officers, according to the report.

During Thursday's court proceedings, public defender Johnson asked to continue Haradon's Jan. 23 trial date, like Thompson's was in December. It was continued to July 10.

TRAVIS SIGLER

Travis Sigler's jury trial was also continued. Sigler, who charged with three counts of armed robbery and one count of attempted robbery causing injury on Oct. 29, saw his trial date continued from Feb. 6 to July 10.

According to court documents, at 6:42 p.m. officers were called to Michael's Italian Restaurant, 528 Harrison Street, Elkhart, where a victim stated he was robbed of his wallet, cell phone and personal items at gunpoint in the parking lot. Then at 7:48 p.m., another victim, an employee of QC Mart, 2637 S. Main St., told officers she was robbed of her car keys and a lighter in the parking lot.

At 8:23 p.m., officers received another call, this time for an attempted robbery at Bowly's Crystal Bar, 109 Freight St. The victim had already left the bar and driven himself to the hospital for injuries sustained during the incident. He told officers a man with a gun demanded money from him and struck him in the head with the gun.

He grabbed for the gun, a struggle ensued, and the man ran from the area. His description matched the description of the other two robberies earlier in the evening. At 10:38 p.m., another victim reported a robbery in the parking lot of Hardy's Bar, 610 S. Main St., with her car keys and purse being stolen.

The vehicle was located near Pleasant Plain Avenue the following morning and after an investigation, Sigler, 33, was released and the driver of the vehicle, Arrick Thomas, was further questioned. He admitted to driving the vehicle during the robberies, as Sigler confronted people. Items missing including two sets of car keys, and a gun were retrieved from the vehicle. On Nov. 3, Sigler was arrested during a traffic stop, and a search conducted by officers found one victim's missing phone and documents from another, although Sigler denied any involvement.

Dani Messick is the education and entertainment reporter for The Goshen News. She can be reached at [email protected] or at 574-538-2065.

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