Officer beat and shot ‘defenseless men,’ then tried to cover it up in Indiana, feds say
A former Indiana police officer is headed to prison after officials say he beat and shot “defenseless” men.
Aaron Jason Strong, 47, was found guilty of three counts of deprivation of rights under color of law and one count of witness tampering, according to a Jan. 7 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana.
Strong’s attorney declined a request for comment from McClatchy News.
In August 2019, Strong, who was a lieutenant with the New Castle Police Department, responded to a report of another officer’s foot chase. When he arrived, the suspect had stopped running and had his hands up in the air and said, “I’m done,” according to officials.
The suspect lowered himself to the ground and another officer walked up to take them into custody, but Strong intervened, prosecutors said.
“Strong ran up and struck the suspect at least twelve times with a metal police baton, nearly striking a fellow officer,” the release said.
Strong was reported by other officers and a criminal investigation was conducted. Strong gave a false report of what happened to investigators “in which he minimized his own use of force and exaggerated the danger posed by the suspect,” according to prosecutors.
In another incident, Strong was helping a correctional officer with a search at the Henry County Jail. During the search, he stomped on an inmate’s head “who was complying with commands to lie on the ground,” officials said.
Then, he walked up to another inmate kneeling on the ground with his back toward Strong and “shot him point-blank in the back with a less-lethal ‘beanbag’ round,” fracturing the man’s spine, prosecutors said.
Strong was aware the beanbag round could cause serious injuries or death when shot at close range, officials said.
“Aaron Strong viciously beat, stomped, and shot three defenseless men with no lawful justification – causing serious injuries including a fractured spine,” Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, said. “After good officers horrified by these abuses reported his actions, Strong lied in an attempt to cover up his crimes.”
New Castle is about a 50-mile drive east of Indianapolis.
This story was originally published January 8, 2025 at 1:25 PM with the headline "Officer beat and shot ‘defenseless men,’ then tried to cover it up in Indiana, feds say."
