Motorcycle gang members accused of targeting Indiana judge for assassination when they shot him, his wife
(CBS NEWS) – Sources from CBS News say that police accused members of a motorcycle club and a street gang of targeting a judge for assassination earlier this month in Lafayette, Indiana, alleging the shooting that left the judge and his wife wounded was part of a scheme to derail a domestic abuse case against one of the attackers.
Police and prosecutors gave updates about the case at a news conference on Tuesday, several days after five people were arrested in connection with the shooting. Authorities praised what they characterized as a relentless effort to track down who opened fire on Tippecanoe County Superior Court Judge Steven Meyer and his wife, Kim, at their home in Lafayette on Jan. 18. Both Meyer and his wife suffered gunshot wounds but survived.
The Lafayette Police Department, the FBI, the Indiana State Police and the Purdue University Police Department launched a search for the shooter that went on for days before apprehending five people in synchronized arrests Thursday evening, including four in Indiana and one in Lexington, Kentucky.
They were identified by police as Raylen Ferguson, 38, Zenada Greer, 61, Thomas Moss, 43, Blake Smith, 32, and Amanda Milsap, 45. Ferguson and Greer are from Kentucky while Moss, Smith and Milsap are from Indiana, according to police.
Court appearances for the suspects were set for Wednesday in Indiana and Kentucky.
“This attack was more than an assault on two citizens,” LaFayette Police Chief Scott Galloway said. “This was an assault on the rule of law itself.”
Prosecutors allege that the attack was designed to derail a domestic abuse case against Moss, a member of the Detroit-based Phantom MC motorcycle club with ties to the Vice Lords street gang.
Moss was charged with multiple violent felonies in June 2024 and was out on bond, according to court records, which also show that he was scheduled to go on trial in front of Meyer on Jan. 20 — two days after the shooting took place. His charges from 2024 include unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious felon, meaning he was already classified as such before those charges were brought against him. There were also multiple charges for domestic battery.
According to a probable cause affidavit, the Vice Lords offered the victim in the case $10,000 not to testify against Moss but she refused.
With the start of Moss’ trial approaching, Smith, who authorities have identified as another Phantom MC member, purchased a shotgun. A masked man traveled to the Meyers’ home armed with that shotgun on Jan. 18. He lured the couple to the door by saying he was looking for his dog, shot them through the door and fled.
“(Meyer) was targeted,” Indiana State Police Lt. Col. Al Williamson said at Tuesday’s news conference. “They went after him for a reason.”
Police recovered the mask, the shooter’s clothing and the shotgun discarded near the Meyers’ home. DNA on the mask matched Ferguson, an associate of the Almighty Vice Lord Nation from Lexington, Kentucky, according to the affidavit.
Surveillance video showed a car that was parked near the Meyers’ home had traveled from Kentucky toward Lafayette on Jan. 16 and traveled toward Smith’s residence in the hour after the shootings, according to the affidavit.
Moss, Ferguson and Smith each face multiple charges, including attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder. Milsap, whom prosecutors allege offered the bribe in the domestic abuse case, faces bribery and obstruction counts. Greer, a woman Ferguson lives with, has been charged with helping a criminal and obstruction. Prosecutors have accused her of traveling to Lafayette with Ferguson.
Milsap’s attorney, Earl McCoy, didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment. Online court records did not list attorneys for Moss, Ferguson or Blake. Jail records indicate Greer is being held in Lexington. Online court records in that state did not list an attorney for her.
