‘Today is about Shane:’ Police & victim’s mom speak about arrest 10 years after murder

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WFIE) - Evansville Police held a news conference that was decade in the making.

As we reported Thursday night, 29-year-old Bobby Handegard turned himself in after a warrant was issued for his arrest.

Police say he was indicted for Shane Breedlove’s murder, which happened in 2015.

Breedlove was shot to death at the intersection of Washington and Thompson.

Three people were charged in 2015, including Handegard, but charges were dropped.

“Today is about Shane. That’s why we have his picture up here. This is the first step to his family going toward justice,” said Evansville Police Chief Phillip Smith.

Chief Smith thanked all the detectives and other agencies who helped with this case.

“I want to thank then Prosecutor Hermann because something was done there. He had the foresight to understand that you only get one crack at a case like that. He didn’t feel like they had a strong enough case,” said Chief Smith.

Chief Smith said he was not able to discuss the new evidence.

Breedlove’s mom, Carol Cleveland, also spoke at the news conference.

She thanked Evansville Police for meeting with them every three months for the last nine and a half years.

“A mother’s love is unconditional, so we were relentless,” said Cleveland.

She shared that she was in a car Wednesday when she got the news about Handegard’s indictment.

“We were screaming and crying. We had to pull over on the side of the road to compose ourselves and get our breath,” she said.

Cleveland also thanked the community for caring about her son.

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