Two men were charged with the murder of an 18-year-old shot last week in Griffith as police continue to look for more people who may have been involved.
“The investigation of Alayna Ortiz’s murder has been all encompassing,” Griffith Police Chief Greg Mance said.
Two people believed to be responsible for Ortiz’s murder “will answer for their heinous crime,” and investigators will “continue to use every resource to identify, charge and arrest all those involved in this crime, regardless of their level of involvement,” according to Mance.
Ortiz, who lived in Valparaiso and was a senior at Portage High School, was fatally shot in the head Jan. 9 in the parking lot of an apartment complex in the 1800 block of North Arbogast Street.
“Based on the information that we have now, we have no reason to believe that Ms. Ortiz was the intended target,” Detective Commander Keith Martin, Griffith police spokesman, said.
Police announced charges Thursday at a press conference held at Griffith’s Town Hall against Giovante Galloway, 21, of Gary, and Juarez Rogers, 48, of Park Forest, Ill., in connection with Ortiz’s death.
Galloway and Rogers were each charged Wednesday in Lake Superior Court with murder, attempted robbery resulting in serious bodily injury, attempted armed robbery, attempted burglary and burglary.
Rogers is Galloway’s uncle, according to Martin.
Ortiz’s shooting resulted from an attempted robbery in Gary earlier in the day Jan. 9 due to Galloway owing William Hawkins, Ortiz’s boyfriend, $1,600 for marijuana, Martin said.
A Griffith police officer was in the area of Ridge Road and Arbogast Street a little after 9 p.m. Jan. 9 and heard “a gunshot and tires screeching,” a probable cause affidavit states.
The officer saw a red SUV speed away from a parking lot of Park West Apartments where the shooting occurred, the affidavit states. The SUV pulled into a strip mall on Ridge Road up to Griffith police officers who were located there, according to the affidavit. Ortiz, who had been shot in the head, was taken to a local hospital where she died, police said.
Police questioned the three other people who were in the SUV with Ortiz, including Hawkins, who was the driver, and a man and a woman, who were “associates” of Hawkins and Ortiz, Martin said.
The woman said that her boyfriend, the man in the SUV, “is involved in buying and selling large quantities of marijuana” that he had shipped to a residence in the 4400 block of Madison Street in Gary through UPS, the affidavit states.
On Jan. 9, the man received roughly 13 pounds of marijuana, according to the affidavit. That evening, someone tried to enter the home, and the man shot toward the door and through a wall, the affidavit states.
The man called Hawkins and asked him to pick them up to take them to where a relative lived in Griffith, according to the affidavit.
On Jan. 14, a witness contacted police about the burglary and shooting leading investigators to Galloway, the affidavit states. The next day, police executed a search warrant at Galloway’s residence in the 4400 block of Connecticut Street in Gary, according to the affidavit.
Galloway admitted he owed $1,600 for marijuana that Hawkins had fronted him, Martin said. When Galloway realized he would not be able to pay Hawkins back, Galloway contacted Rogers, according to Martin.
“According to Galloway, his intent was to rob Hawkins of his marijuana in order to raise the money to pay Hawkins back,” Martin said.
Rogers, Galloway and “three unknown associates” met up Jan. 9 to rob Hawkins at his residence in the 4400 block of Madison Street but were unsuccessful when someone inside fired at them, according to Martin.
While they planned another attempt, Hawkins pulled up in the red SUV, and picked up the man and the woman inside the residence, Martin said. Galloway, Rogers and the three others followed the SUV, according to Martin.
“The plan now was to confront the vehicle, which was believed to have bags of narcotics” while the SUV was stopped in traffic, Martin said. They made an attempt near Harrison Street and Ridge Road and Gary, but the SUV drove away “before the robbery could play out,” according to Martin.
Galloway, Rogers and the three others followed the SUV to Park West Apartments, Martin said. At least two people got out of Galloway’s vehicle, approached the SUV and tried to open a door, police said. One person tried to shoot at the SUV “but the rounds did not fire,” Martin said. Another shot was fired, shattering a window of the SUV, according to Martin.
The person who fired the fatal shot “is still under investigation,” Martin said.
As the SUV fled to the strip mall, Galloway’s group went back to Madison Street “to burglarize Hawkins’ residence,” the affidavit states. They took THC cartridges, marijuana and two televisions, according to the affidavit.
Galloway was in custody Thursday, while Rogers remained at large, Martin said. Police believe Rogers to still be in the area.
Investigators are also still working to identify and locate the three people Rogers brought with him for the robbery, Martin said.
Anyone with information is asked to call Griffith police at 219-924-7503, ext. 252, or the Griffith police’s Anonymous Tip Hotline at 219-922-3085.
Martin said that “at this time” Hawkins will not be charged by the Griffith Police Department. Hawkins, 18, was charged Tuesday in Lake Superior Court with dealing in a Schedule I controlled substance and dealing in marijuana, among other charges, from a Jan. 13 incident in Hobart, court records show.
The man and woman who were in Hawkins’ SUV during the shooting had not been charged as of Thursday afternoon, according to court records.
Mance thanked all those who provided information, surveillance footage and helped with the investigation, including the Northwest Indiana Major Crimes Task Force, ATF, Secret Service, Indiana State Police crime lab, Porter and Lake County prosecutor’s offices, Lake County coroner’s office, South Suburban Illinois Task Force, Northwest Regional SWAT Team and Chicago Police Department.
“Collectively, I think they have put in over 900 hours of work on this from all participants,” Rick Ryfa, Griffith Town Council president, said.
Ryfa and Mance also offered their condolences to Ortiz’s family and friends.
“We’re very sorry for their loss,” Ryfa said.
Ryfa said “crimes like this don’t happen very frequently in Griffith and our surrounding towns.”
Griffith’s last murder, which was domestic related, occurred in 2014, Martin said Before that, the last one was in 2011, according to Martin.
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