A man was found dead in a parking lot on the 2100 block of S. Liberty Drive early on the morning of May 7 with a gunshot wound in his chest, according to a press release by Bloomington Police Department Captain Ryan Pedigo. The man’s identity is being withheld by the Monroe County Coroner’s Office at this time.
The woman who reported the incident said she saw the man lying in the parking lot when she arrived at work that morning, around 6:20 a.m. She and a coworker approached him and determined that he was dead.
Officers detained 56-year-old Scott Cooper, who was sleeping in a parked van nearby with what appeared to be a bullet hole through the windshield and transported him to the Bloomington Police Department for further questioning. After acquiring a warrant, police found a .380 caliber handgun inside the van.
Cooper was transported to Monroe County Jail and booked on a charge of felony murder. He pleaded not guilty at his initial pretrial hearing on May 9 and remains in custody. His next court date is scheduled for June 18.
