INDIANAPOLIS -- The final suspect charged in the deadly 2012 Richmond Hill Explosion will not begin trial this week after reaching a plea deal with prosecutors.
Glenn Hults was arrested in April 2015 on charges of conspiring to commit an arson that resulted in the explosion of a home on the south side of Indianapolis and the deaths of two people.
Prosecutors allege Hults knew about the plot to burn or blow up Monserrate Shirley's home in the Richmond Hill subdivision, and that he agreed to watch her daughter during three subsequent weekends when Shirley's boyfriend, Mark Leonard, and his brother, Bob Leonard Jr., attempted to commit the arson.
Breaking: Glenn Hults the fifth suspect in 2012 Richmond Hill blast admits to knowing something and failing to report to
police. .@rtv6— Rafael Sánchez (@RafaelOnTV) November 9, 2016
SPECIAL SECTION | Full coverage of the Richmond Hill Explosion
Hults is also accused of agreeing to store personal items from Shirley's home to prevent them from being damaged.
On Wednesday, Hults and Marion County prosecutors agreed to a deal in which he would plead guilty to one count of assisting a criminal, a class "D" felony. Hults faces six months to three years in prison.
Hults' attorney Ralph Staples released a statement to RTV6 Wednesday about the plea agreement:
"Mr. Hults was able to admit what he did. He maintained all along that he wasn't involved in any conspiracy to commit arson, but he was aware of what was going on and failed to report his knowledge to the police."
The plea will bring all five principal cases to an end just one day before the fourth anniversary of the explosion.
More details: Glenn Hults will be sentenced on December 28th at 1pm after making a plea deal today. His trial was to start on Monday .@rtv6
— Rafael Sánchez (@RafaelOnTV) November 9, 2016
In August, the fourth defendant charged in the case, Gary Thompson, agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit arson. He faces up to 20 years in prison in his December sentencing hearing.
The two primary suspects in the case – brothers Mark and Bob Leonard – each received consecutive life sentences in separate trials.
Monserrate Shirley agreed to a plea deal in exchange for her testimony at the trials of her four co-defendants. She still potentially faces decades in prison for her role in the explosion.
A sentencing hearing for Hults was scheduled for December 28 at 1 p.m. in Marion County Superior Court.
