INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office has arrested two men believed to have been involved in the shooting death of a Vero Beach man in a case that dates back to 2014.
Last week, Detectives Kevin Heinig and Charlie Clark traveled to New Jersey, where they coordinated with the United States Marshals to arrest Jason Hiler, 26, of Deland, Fla., according to authorities. After his arrest, Hiler allegedly made incriminating statements to the detectives resulting in an arrest of another suspect.
Upon their return to Florida, the detectives coordinated the arrest of Javon Roberts, 22, in Sanford, according to the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office. Roberts, upon his arrest, made statements that placed him at the scene along with Hiler.
Hiler is being held without bond at the Keogh-Dwyer Corrections Institute at the Sussex County Sheriff’s Office in New Jersey, according to a release. Roberts was arrested by the Sanford Police Department and is being held without bond at the Seminole County Jail.
In the early morning hours of July 27, 2014, the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office received a call of a shooting at the Hampton Inn, 9350 19th Lane in Vero Beach, according to authorities. Responding deputies located Kevin Howe, 30, of Wabasso, in a hotel room bleeding from the head as a result of a gunshot wound.
Howe was transported to Lawnwood Medical Center in Fort Pierce, where he succumbed to his injuries on July 31, 2014, according to the release. Detectives Heinig and Clark, assigned to the case, obtained a search warrant for the hotel room registered to Howe, where they located Howe’s cellular telephone, spent shell casings, over $5,000 in cash, more than 100 grams of crack cocaine, greater than 200 grams of MDMA (ecstasy), and guns.
Crime Scene detectives processed the room looking for any evidence that may reveal the identity of Howe’s murderers, according to the Sheriff’s Office. They noticed a styrofoam cup from a Kangaroo gas station and a glass vodka bottle in the room. Detectives determined through alibi witnesses that Howe had not been in or near any Kangaroo gas stations prior to the shooting incident.
Because no Kangaroo gas stations exist in Indian River County, detectives began canvassing area Kangaroo gas stations in an attempt to identify who may have left the cup in the room. The Kangaroo cup was processed for possible DNA. Fingerprints from the glass vodka bottle were submitted to the Statewide Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS).
Video was obtained from nearby businesses depicting two subjects running out of the hotel right after the homicide occurred, according to authorities. A search warrant for Howe’s telephone was obtained with the search revealing critical information as to who Howe had been in contact with leading up to his death.
Interviews were conducted with family, friends and relatives of Howe at length to detail the hours before his death. Detectives eventually identified Hiler as a possible suspect, according to the release. The investigation revealed that shortly after Howe’s death, Hiler left Florida for New Jersey. Detectives learned that Hiler had been attempting to establish relationships with family members in Florida, then suddenly left the state and cut off all contact.
DNA collected from the Kangaroo cup was analyzed. Detectives coordinated with cooperating family members of Hiler to obtain a DNA sample from a blood relative, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The familial DNA sample was submitted to the crime lab where they determined that the DNA found on the Kangaroo cup was 99.9% likely to be from someone in that family.
By January 2015, detectives were ready to interview Hiler, according to authorities. They traveled to New Jersey, where Hiler told them he had never been to Vero Beach. A court order was obtained to retrieve a sample of Hiler’s DNA. Detectives traveled back to Florida without a confession but closer to making an arrest.
The DNA sample was submitted to the crime lab, where they ultimately determined that the DNA found on the Kangaroo cup, left in the hotel room where the murder occurred, belonged to Hiler, according to the release. In March 2015, the Statewide Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) located a match on the fingerprints submitted from the vodka bottle. The match was identified as belonging to Roberts.
In April 2015, detectives obtained a search warrant to collect Roberts’ DNA, according to authorities. They traveled to Orlando, where they met with Roberts at the Sanford Police Department. After the DNA sample was obtained, Roberts agreed to speak with detectives. Roberts made incriminating statements to the detectives, saying that he had traveled to Vero Beach with Hiler on the night of the murder.
Initially, Roberts cooperated with detectives, according to the Sheriff’s Office. In September and October 2015, detectives made numerous trips to Orlando to meet with Roberts but each time he continued to evade them. Based on the previously obtained evidence, Det. Heinig obtained arrest warrants for Hiler and Roberts, each for one count of murder.
“The success of this case is a direct result of our detectives never giving up on finding justice and witnesses who were strong enough to come forward with critical information,” said Indian River County Sheriff Deryl Loar. “We are very proud of everyone who worked on this case with special congratulations to Detectives Heinig and Clark. We will continue to fight for all homicide victims and we hope that with these arrests, witnesses in other cases will be bold enough to come forward and help us deliver justice to the families of other homicide victims.”
