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Indy woman says 16-year-old son shot, killed left voicemail as he was dying

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – An Indianapolis woman is sharing her story for the first time after losing her 16-year-old son in a gas station shooting.

It happened last month at the Conoco gas station in the 4100 block of East 16th Street just before 10:15 p.m.

“This is the worst pain I ever felt and I’m like, God, why me why my son and I still don’t understand it,” said Talishia, victim’s mother.

The mother of Theothus Carter said the pain of losing her only child is unbearable. She described him as funny and caring.

She said she talked with detectives two days ago, but so far no one has been arrested.

“I miss him so much and I just want to know why,” she said. “Why did you take him from me?”

She said she gave him five dollars to go to the gas station with a friend on the night of August 13th.

“I gave him a hug I gave him a kiss,” she said. “I said I love you man man he said I love you too.”

Not too long after that, she received a phone call saying her son was dead.

“When he said I’ll be right back, I didn’t know I was going to be right back to see my baby laying on the ground and he’s dead,” she said.

Investigators said Carter was sitting in the passenger seat of the car, when someone drove up and shot him.

Surveillance photos show a car described as a black 20-15 Kia Sorento leaving the scene. Talishia later learned her son tried calling after the shooting.

“On the voicemail I can hear my baby taking his last breath and the crazy part is the second message he called like he was trying to gasp for air,” she said. “He said mom like he was trying to tell me what was going on he can’t then it just went silent.”

She said he was trying to talk as he was dying.

“He called my mom as he was dying on her voicemail on her voicemail,” she said. “I’m trying not to cry but this hurts this hurts.”

Talishia said she wants more than anything to see her son again. She knows one day they will meet again.

“I just want him to know that I love him I will always love him and I’m sorry that I wasn’t there to save him I wasn’t there to help him,” she said.

She said detectives asked her if it was okay for them to release the surveillance video from the night of the shooting. She told them yes.

24-Hour News 8 reached out to IMPD for an update, but did not hear back.

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