LAKE COUNTY, Ind. — Indiana State Police arrested a man and recovered a handgun that had been reported stolen during a crash investigation in Lake County on Friday.
According to an affidavit for probable cause, state police were called to mile marker 10 of Interstate 80 westbound around 3:56 p.m. to investigate a crash. When troopers arrived at the scene, they located a blue 2003 Ford F-150 pickup truck bearing a Tennessee license plate that had become disabled in the third and fourth lanes of the interstate.
Police observed that the vehicle had sustained heavy damage, which caused its airbags to deploy. Troopers also reported that the truck appeared to have 10 bullet holes in it, two head imprints in its windshield and blood on the passenger seat.
As state police approached the disabled vehicle, they saw a shirtless man with a cut on his head walking across the westbound lanes of the interstate. When troopers made contact with the man, he identified himself as 34-year-old Alejandro Garcia Garcia and indicated he could only speak Spanish.
Investigators then began to use a translation app to talk to Garcia Garcia, who initially declined to provide a statement on the crash. As police began to speak with him further, however, Garcia Garcia reported he was the vehicle’s lone occupant.
In the affidavit filed in Garcia Garcia’s case, police expressed their doubts with Garcia Garcia’s claim given that the crashed truck had two head imprints on its windshield and blood on the passenger seat. Court records do not, however, confirm whether or not state police located a second occupant of the Ford during their investigation of the crash.
Police also found a Sig Sauer P365 handgun in plain view in the Ford as they examined the truck. The gun was in the back of the vehicle with an empty magazine. According court documents, troopers seized the gun when they found it “due to the chaotic nature of the scene.”
When ISP checked on the status of the handgun, they determined it had been reported stolen by a man in Nashville, Tennessee. Troopers questioned Garcia Garcia about the gun, and he told them it belonged to him. Garcia Garcia reportedly told police he bought the gun “off the streets in Mexico.”
As his conversation with police continued, Garcia Garcia told police the Ford’s windshield had bullet holes in it because God told him to fire his gun. Garcia Garcia added that God told him everything would be OK if he shot the gun. He also claimed God told him people would take him seriously if he fired shots.
ISP also determined that Garcia Garcia had been charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated in Bartholomew County. Public records indicate the Bartholomew County case was filed against Garcia Garcia in April 2024. A warrant was issued for his arrest in Bartholomew County in May 2024.
Troopers arrested Garcia Garcia during their encounter with him on I-80. He was taken to an interview room at a local police department to talk to a Spanish-speaking officer after the crash. After he got in the interview room, Garcia Garcia said he wanted to remain silent. ISP then terminated its interview with him.
State police transported Garcia Garcia to a local hospital to get medics to clear him for incarceration. During his ride to the hospital, Garcia Garcia spoke to the Spanish-speaking officer. That officer indicated that the things Garcia Garcia was saying were mostly incoherent and obtained to his childhood and God.
During Garcia Garcia’s rambling, the Spanish-speaking officer asked him if he’d answer a question. Garcia Garcia agreed to answer a question.
The officer then asked Garcia Garcia if he was in the U.S. legally. According to court documents, Garcia Garcia admitted he was not in the U.S. legally. He added that God told him to cross the border illegally. Publicly available records do not provide any additional insight on Garcia Garcia’s immigration status.
As of this article’s publication, state police did not have Garcia Garcia in custody. Court records indicate that medical staff had not released Garcia Garcia from the hospital as of Friday.
Garcia Garcia faces five charges, according to Indiana’s public court reporting system. Below is a list of those charges:
- Theft of a firearm — a Level 5 Felony
- Unlawful possession of a firearm by an Alien — a Level 6 Felony
- Criminal recklessness committed with a deadly weapon — a Level 6 Felony
- Knowingly or intentionally operating a motor vehicle without ever having received a license — a Class C Misdemeanor
- Operating a vehicle with suspended registration — a Class C Misdemeanor
