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Men shot, beat pregnant woman in the street while two other victims lay dying, police say

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INDIANAPOLIS -- Two men shot and beat a pregnant woman in the street while her boyfriend and his cousin lay dying nearby, according to murder charges filed Wednesday.

Marquis Cracraft, 24, and Kalee England, 22, were arrested on Sunday following a triple shooting in the 1800 block of Cottage Avenue.

Two victims, 21-year-old Eric Hoffman and 32-year-old William Koenig III, died from injuries sustained in the shooting.

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A third victim, Jessica Smith, was rushed into surgery for two gunshot wounds to the stomach. Police said she was 9 months pregnant at the time of the shooting.

Doctors were able to deliver Smith’s child safely, and she was expected to recover from her injuries. Smith told police Koenig is the father of her child. Hoffman is Koenig’s cousin. According to Hoffman’s girlfriend, Brittany Brown, Hoffman had become a father himself just two months prior.

According to a probable cause affidavit filed in Marion County Court on Wednesday, the shooting stemmed from an argument when Koenig confronted England about shooting his dog a few days prior.

Investigators were able to find video footage of the entire altercation that conflicted with the initial accounts given by England and Cracraft.

In the video, Koenig can be seen setting a handgun down and then approaching England and Cracraft. Their argument quickly devolves into a fight, which Cracraft joins in on.

Hoffman then joined the fight, at which point police say the video shows Cracraft pulling a handgun out of England’s pocket and shooting Hoffman and Koenig.

According to police, Cracraft then shot Smith twice in the stomach as she was running toward the men with Koenig’s gun.

Police say the video shows England repeatedly punching Koenig while, simultaneously, Cracraft is shooting him several more times.

According to police, the men then began punching Smith repeatedly in the face until she fell into the street.

Police say the men then returned to Koenig, who they resumed beating and kicking.

Cracraft and England are each charged with two counts of murder and one count of battery by means of a deadly weapon in the case.

Court records show Cracraft is also facing charges of criminal confinement while armed with a deadly weapon, domestic battery with bodily injury to a pregnant woman and strangulation in connection to an unrelated case from February.

A status of counsel hearing was scheduled for the murder case for Dec. 22 at 9:00 a.m.

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