A 21-year-old double murder suspect hanged himself at the Marion County Jail Monday, authorities said.
Saul Blanco, Indianapolis, was found in his cell at 3:34 p.m. He was hanging from a bedsheet that was tied to the top bunk of his bed, according to an Indianapolis metropolitan police report.
Blanco was charged with two counts of murder on February 1. Police said Blanco admitted to shooting Raymond Elsear “Big Ray” Martir Sr., 42, and Johnny Ferguson, 30, about 11 a.m. Jan. 31 in the 9100 block of Central Avenue.
Blanco was being held without bond and his trial was scheduled for April 5. Officials were also checking his immigration status.
Medics at the jail tried to revive Blanco until 4:21 p.m., when he was pronounced dead. Blanco’s cellmate told investigators he gave no sign of being depressed or suicidal.
Prosecutors said Blanco and the two victims were members of the Latin Kings street gang and Blanco shot the victims in retaliation for a beating he had suffered.
Three of Martir’s children were in the home at the time of the shooting, and one discovered the men’s bodies.
Sheriff’s spokesman Julio Fernandez said Blanco was in the general population and was not on suicide watch but was alone in his cell when he hanged himself.
He had left a dayroom and gone back to the cell, which are unlocked for periods during the day, Fernandez said. He shut the door to the cell and placed a sheet over the small window, as prisoners often do when they use the toilet, Fernandez said.
