Investigation into 2022 deadly Indianapolis stabbing results in arrest
INDIANAPOLIS — A year-long investigation into a deadly stabbing in 2022 has resulted in an arrest, according to Indianapolis police.
Montez Craig, 40, was taken into custody Monday in the killing of her then-boyfriend, James Milton Jr., who was found dead Dec. 11, 2022 with multiple stab wounds.
Indianapolis police found Milton after officers responded to the 3600 block of North Lasalle Street to conduct a welfare check on the 47-year-old man. He had been stabbed multiple times, including once in the chest.
Craig entered a not guilty plea Thursday afternoon and her intent to hire private counsel. An attorney wasn't listed in online court records at time of publication.
Police identified Craig as a person of interest in the stabbing early in the investigation after she told officers about the killing and said she acted in self-defense, according to new details contained in a probable cause affidavit. She said she had been involved in a “minor accident” near 36th and Pennsylvania streets and asked Milton to pick her up.
She said Milton took her to one of his properties near 36th and North Lasalle streets and attacked her, prompting her to stab him in the chest with a curved pizza knife.
The coroner’s office ruled Milton died from the stab wound in his chest, which plunged 4 ½ inches into his heart.
Police said Craig was released from custody after consulting with the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, but continued investigating the case in consultation with the office.
Investigators spoke with witnesses, who recounted the couple had been arguing over cheating allegations about the time of the stabbing. Relatives told police that on the day of his killing, Milton stopped by an aunt’s house and they saw Craig.
“He said he was going down on 30th Street,” a witness said. After he left, they never heard from Milton again.
A few months into the investigation, another detective was contacted by a paralegal with Indianapolis Public Schools about Craig reportedly saying she had killed someone.
School staff told detectives that when they asked Craig about what she said, she reported having a domestic dispute with her fiancé and he “succumbed to his injuries.”
Police said social workers “did not know what to think” about her account and called it “far-fetched.” The social worker told police about a case that occurred a month prior, in which Craig blamed being in a three-hour car chase as the reason for her children not being in school. Detectives noted they did not find reports about car chases or 911 calls, which Craig claimed to have made.
Another case worker with the Department of Child Services told police Craig had threatened to “slit her tires and slit her throat” while investigating a previous complaint.
Contact reporter Sarah Nelson at sarah.nelson@indystar.com
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Investigation into 2022 deadly Indianapolis stabbing results in arrest
