Engaged couple shot to death while closing Papa John’s restaurant, Indiana police say

An engaged couple who worked at Papa John’s were found shot and killed after they closed the restaurant last weekend in Indiana, according to prosecutors and media reports.

The bodies of Haley Smith, 22, and Dustin Carr, 37, were discovered the morning of Sunday, Feb. 13, when a coworker arrived at the Elkhart, Indiana, business, according to the prosecuting attorney. They were killed the night before when a former coworker, 19-year-old Jose Benitez-Tilley, was inside the store around closing time, officials say.

Benitez-Tilley was at the Papa John’s two times during the night — the first time being around 10 p.m. when he came trying to get his job back, according to court documents obtained by WNDU. A worker at the restaurant told police the store has had issues with Benitez-Tilley previously.

The former coworker left the store but returned, a Papa John’s employee said. When that employee left, according to court documents, it was just Smith, Carr and Benitez-Tilley inside the restaurant, WNDU reported.

A vehicle driven by Benitez-Tilley left Papa John’s for the second time around 11:30 p.m. that night, driving behind the restaurant without its lights on, WBND reported.

Elkhart police were called to the restaurant the next morning and began a homicide investigation.

Surveillance footage obtained by police shows the killings, and Benitez-Tilley was taken into custody Sunday, according to WBND.

Benitez-Tilley also stole Smith’s purse, Carr’s jewelry and cash from the Papa John’s office, WNDU reported.

Formal charges are expected on Wednesday, Feb. 16, according to the prosecuting attorney.

The prosecuting attorney said Smith and Carr were targeted in the killings and the public is not at risk.

Friends of Carr and Smith sent their condolences on social media. Smith was described by one friend as “a generous soul.”

Elkhart is in northern Indiana about 110 miles southeast of Chicago.

This story was originally published February 15, 2022 at 3:39 PM with the headline "Engaged couple shot to death while closing Papa John’s restaurant, Indiana police say."