ANDERSON, Ind. — A warrant has been issued for a man accused of playing a role in the shooting death of a 26-year-old woman in Anderson in early February.
According to court documents obtained by FOX59/CBS4 Friday night, a warrant has been issued for 18-year-old Ja’Brawll Thomas of Anderson on the following charges:
- Murder
- Conspiracy to Commit Murder, a Level 2 Felony
- Reckless Homicide, a Level 5 Felony
- Assisting a Criminal, a Level 5 Felony
Thomas has been identified by authorities as the fourth suspect in the fatal shooting of Dayla Swain on Feb. 2 at Sonny Ray’s Café in the 1500 block of South Madison Avenue. Swain suffered a gunshot wound to the chest and was transported to Community Hospital where she later died.
According to previous reports, Swain was accidentally killed in the crossfire of what was intended to be a targeted hit by a criminal organization out of Chicago. The hit had attempted to kill a potential witness in an effort to prevent them from providing testimony in a murder case in Madison County.
Police have already announced the arrests of 18-year-old Rashawn Darrius Samuels, a 17-year-old and a 14-year-old for their alleged roles in the murder. Samuels is facing the same charges as Thomas.
As part of their investigation, detectives reviewed several pole cameras near the cafe. One of these cameras appeared to show “muzzle flashes” from the north and south sides of the parking lot while a blue F-150 fled the area and headed south on Madison Avenue.
The blue F-150 was later found with its back window shot out, the right front passenger door appeared to have one bullet hole just below the window, the front windshield had three bullet holes and two more on the passenger side and one through the driver’s side.
While processing the scene, detectives recovered 12 spent 9mm shell casings and one spent 45 caliber extended handgun magazine containing 14 rounds of ammunition.
During their investigation, detectives learned that all of the suspects in the hit were allegedly tied to “Mickey Cobra Nation,” a criminal organization that originated in Chicago.
Court documents detail how investigators sifted through Instagram conversations that allegedly featured Thomas and Samuels discussing plans to meet up on Jan. 28 in Anderson. During one of these conversations, the group had reportedly agreed to meet at Thomas’ residence.
During a later interview with officers, Thomas reportedly claimed that he did not know if the other suspects in the case had met at his house. He also stated that his mother had been “getting on him” since he was beginning to “get back to his old ways” by hanging out with these suspects, court documents said.
Thomas went on to allegedly admit to his involvement in Mickey Cobra Nation but told detectives that he believed it stood for “Making Cash Now.”
During the same interview, Thomas allegedly admitted that he and other unidentified individuals were at Sonny Ray’s Cafe looking for the witness.
