Senseless killing: A shocking death, a remarkable life

Nathan Trapuzzano was expecting a baby on May 7, would celebrate his first wedding anniversary on May 11 and turn 25 years old on May 17. He was a self-taught computer engineer, graduated summa cum laude from Ball State University with a degree in classical studies and was fluent in Latin.

On Tuesday, while taking his regular morning walk for exercise, he was gunned down on the Westside for no apparent reason.

Family, friends and colleagues on Wednesday mourned his shocking death while honoring his remarkable life.

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"Nathan Trapuzzano was the most kind-hearted person you would ever know," a statement Wednesday evening from the family said. "He never had an unkind thought in his head. He was so in love wife his wife, Jennifer, and unborn baby daughter, Cecilia. He was so excited about being a new Daddy. ...

"As with many tragedies, this seems so senseless, and yet the outpouring of love and support reminds us that there is so much good in this world.

Father Christopher Roberts, the administrator at Saint Mary in Union City and Saint Joseph in Winchester, said he met Trapuzzano while spending time with Catholic students at the Newman Center at Ball State.

"There were two things beyond his command of Latin letters that impressed me about Nathan from the start," Roberts writes in his blog. "The first was his goodness. He was a true gentleman, considerate of others and always wanting to become a better man. The second thing that impressed me about Nathan was his deep Catholic faith. …

"We pray also for his murderers, who took the life of one of the best young men I have ever known. May God forgive them."

Ivy Tech Community College, where Trapuzzano worked, said it will grant a full two-year scholarship to his unborn daughter to honor the father.

"The Ivy Tech Community College family is shocked and saddened by the sudden loss of one of our own, Nathan Trapuzzano, a young and bright software engineer at the college," a statement from the school said.

Indianapolis police on Tuesday concentrated forces on the neighborhood where Trapuzzano was shot, merging the Southwest and Northwest districts and urging the public to scrutinize a security video that shows the two attackers.

Trapuzzano was walking east on 16th Street when he was attacked by two men, one of whom appeared to act as a lookout, between about 5:45 a.m. and 6 a.m. Tuesday.

Police have released no known motive for the shooting. Trapuzzano appeared to be dressed in simple workout clothes and not carrying anything.

He was found, shot in the abdomen, in the parking lot of Tron Tire Shop, 3500 block of West 16th Street, where he typically walked every evening.

After he was shot, video footage from the tire store shows the second assailant fled northeast across West 16th Street. The first assailant, believed to have been the shooter, fled west on West 16th Street.

Trapuzzano underwent surgery at Eskenazi Hospital after being taken there before 6 a.m., police said.

He died at 7:40 a.m., said Lt. Christopher Bailey of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

His wife, Jennifer, is struggling emotionally, family members said Wednesday, but she is physically healthy and the baby is fine.

Originally from Franklin Park, Penn., Trapuzzano graduated summa cum laude from Ball State in 2011 with a degree in classical studies, according to his family. He decided to pursue a career in computer programming despite having never taken a computer programming class.

He read ancient literature and spoke fluent Latin. A devout Catholic, Trapuzzano was a member of Holy Rosary Parish, 520 Stevens St., and enjoyed the traditional Mass spoken in Latin.

He is the fourth of five children.

Donations can be made at any PNC Bank location to the Nathan Trapuzzano Memorial Fund.

Adrian Ordaz, owner of the tire shop near where Trapuzzano was killed, said while he never knew Trapuzzano's name or had an extended conversation with him, he and his employees recognized the man and frequently waved and yelled hello as the fitness walker passed the tire business. Ordaz, also 24, wept over the friendly walker's death.

"He is an everyday walker. We usually saw him at closing time about 7, when we were pulling tires in," Ordaz said. "Rain, snow, cold, hot — he would be walking.

"We didn't really ever set down and talk to him," he said, "But you see him every day. It's kind of like seeing your neighbor, you know?"

Police released security footage of the attack captured on cameras Ordaz had installed three or four months ago after his business was robbed. The cameras helped him identify the thief, who was later arrested, but Ordaz now hopes they help identify the killers of the friendly young man he had grown to count on seeing every evening.

Ordaz said he didn't know whether Trapuzzano also regularly walked every morning, as the tire business opens at 9 a.m.

IMPD's Northwest and Southwest districts share 16th Street as a dividing line, so it made sense to combine the districts to coordinate the investigation, said Southwest District Commander David Hofmann.

"The goal is to catch a murderer," Hofmann said.

Beginning Tuesday evening and continuing into Wednesday, each shift from both districts was to meet at a mobile command post across from the slaying scene. Officers would be briefed on any new developments and shown the security video footage, he said.

The video is grainy and detectives could not determine the race of the attackers or glean many physical details about the two, who appeared to be men who are not extremely tall or bulky.

But detectives hope someone who knows them might recognize them by their clothing or mannerisms. In addition, Hofmann said, it's likely the two have talked about the killing, and someone who heard them might have information valuable to investigators.

Trapuzzano's slaying is one of more than seven shootings in Indianapolis since Saturday night. Four people died in weekend shootings, including a triple homicide Sunday night in the 9500 block of Shoreland Court near 21st Street and Post Road.

Anyone with information is asked to call the IMPD homicide unit at (317) 327-3475 or Crime Stoppers at (317) 262-TIPS (8477).

Star reporter Vic Ryckaert contributed to this article. Call Star reporter Diana Penner at (317) 444-6249. Follow her on Twitter: @DianaPenner.