INDIANAPOLIS — A Greenwood man has been charged with murder and feticide in connection with the homicide of a pregnant woman on Indy’s south side.
Inside a second-story apartment on Ella Dobbs Lane, Sha’Naiya McDonald was suffocated, stabbed and beaten to death one day before her 20th birthday. Court records show the victim was 20 weeks pregnant when she was brutally murdered.
The victim’s roommate quickly helped police identify the suspect as the father of the unborn child. Police say 22-year-old Regulus Baka confessed to the killing following a fight with his on-again-off-again girlfriend.
“What’s alleged in this case is not something you see every day,” said Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears. “I think it brings a light to domestic violence we see in our community.”
Domestic violence awareness advocates say the murder illustrates how domestic violence is one of the leading causes of death for pregnant women.
“With domestic violence and pregnancy it can increase the chances of homicide,” said Danyette Smith with Indy Champions. “So it’s super important if you are going through domestic violence that you are able to reach out to someone and know what those high lethality chances are.”
The morning of the murder, the suspect stated the victim got mad, began hitting him and grabbed a knife. Baka insisted he acted in self-defense because she was threatening to kill him.
Prosecutors claim Baka then admitted he struck the victim four times in the head with a space heater as she was lying on the floor. He then used a kitchen pan to hit her in the head some more and wrapped tape around her nose so she would stop breathing, while also stabbing her with a knife.
Baka said the victim was screaming for help while he beat her, but added, “I just wanted her dead.”
Attorney Mario Massillamany isn’t connected to the case but said Indiana courts can only convict someone of feticide if the suspect were aware his actions would kill the fetus.
“In Indiana, for the prosecutor’s office to be able to convict someone of feticide, they’ve got to be able to prove the individual knew she was pregnant at the time that he murdered her,” said Massillamany.
Mears said that the prosecutor’s office believes they can prove this charge.
“We certainly believe that we’re in a position to prove she knew or should have known she was in fact pregnant,” said Mears.
Police say surveillance and traffic cameras showed the suspect flee the scene of the murder in his brother’s car. This footage helped lead police to Baka’s apartment complex, where he was arrested following a brief standoff with SWAT officers.
Baka is now being held without bond at the Marion County Jail while he awaits a court hearing that is scheduled for next week.
