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Five people from St. Joseph County are being charged after an alleged shooting incident in Syracuse.
Joshua Neil Lewis, 23, Mishawaka, is charged with attempted murder, a level 1 felony; attempt to commit burglary with a deadly weapon, a level 2 felony; attempt to commit armed robbery, a level 3 felony; and conspiracy to commit armed robbery, a level 3 felony.
Shamarah Elsie Allen, 23; Guadalupe Viridian Maciel, 21; and Tessa Ann Semak, 21, all of South Bend, are each charged with attempt to commit burglary with a deadly weapon, a level 2 felony; attempt to commit armed robbery, a level 3 felony; and conspiracy to commit armed robbery, a level 3 felony.
Arreanna Night Standridge, 20, Mishawaka, is charged with intimidation, a level 6 felony.
Lewis, Maciel, Semak and Standridge were all booked in the St. Joseph County Jail on Tuesday, June 30 on out-of-county holds for this case. A warrant was issued for Allen’s arrest on June 23.
According to the probable cause affidavit, at approximately 10:21 p.m. Jan. 23, Kosciusko County Dispatch advised law enforcement of shots fired in Syracuse.
A Syracuse Police Department officer arrived on scene and spoke with a witness who said he heard two loud bangs, saw smoke coming from a hallway and located a physical shell casing. The officer located a bullet hole in a concrete block wall. Four people were inside the home at the time of the incident.
A man said he ordered food via DoorDash and heard a knock on his door. When the man opened the door, a man grabbed his sweater, pulled him partially out of the residence and pointed a handgun at him. The man told police the person fired two shots at him, but he pushed him away. He broke free from the individual and went back into his home.
A detective reviewed surveillance footage. The footage from Jan. 23 revealed at about 10:17 p.m., a vehicle pulled into a nearby parking lot. Three individuals exited the vehicle while wearing masks and approached the man’s residence. The person on the south side of the door pulled out a gun and one of the individuals on the north side of the door knocked on the door. When the man opened the door, he was pulled forward and the gun was discharged two times toward the man.
The detective talked to the man, who said he recently received death threats from Standridge, according to court documents. He said Standridge told him that her friend, later identified as Maciel, would “take care of him.” The man also said both Standridge and Semak previously forced entry into his home on Jan. 14. During that incident, the man was accused of stealing Semak’s safe that contained a large amount of cash.
The detective verified through Bureau of Motor Vehicles records Semak registered the same vehicle on the surveillance footage.
Historical cellular location data and mapping data determined both Semak and Maciel had traveled together from South Bend to Syracuse on Jan. 23. Semak and Maciel also stopped at a business in Wakarusa prior to going to Syracuse. Surveillance footage from the business showed Semak’s vehicle at the business, with Allen, Semak and the suspect who shot at the man entering the business, according to court documents.
On March 2, the detective identified Lewis as the individual who shot at the man and corroborated his identity through BMV photos and public social media accounts. Phone records also showed Semak’s phone received multiple calls with a phone number used by Lewis on the day of the shooting.
The detective searched Allen’s iCloud account and found a group text message between Allen, Maciel, Semak and Lewis about an ongoing conspiracy to commit a burglary at the man’s residence to recover the safe or steal currency. The text messages also stated Standridge “didn’t want to be a part of it.”
Following the shooting incident, Maciel sent a text to Semak stating, “I’m mad and we don’t get a penny,” indicating the planned robbery failed to net any currency.
