Man forced wife, kids into his truck at gunpoint after they fled to a hotel to try to escape him

Indianapolis man convicted of 14 felony charges

Background: The Candlewood Suites hotel in Indianapolis, Ind., where Robert Vanatta”s family fled on March 22, 2025 (Google Maps). Robert Vanatta (Johnson County Sheriff’s Office).

An Indiana man who forced his family into his truck at gunpoint and threatened to kill them all will spend the next two decades in prison.

Robert Vanatta, 30, was sentenced to 20 years in prison plus two years' probation in connection with a domestic violence incident.

Court records stated that Vanatta was convicted of 14 felony charges — three counts of criminal confinement, four counts of intimidation, three counts of criminal recklessness, and one count each of strangulation, domestic battery in the presence of a child under 16, and neglect of a dependent.

Vanatta’s wife, their 5-year-old daughter, and her two teenage sons fled their home to escape his violence, only to be pursued to a Candlewood Suites hotel in Greenwood, Indiana.

According to court documents, the family arrived at the hotel and asked the front desk clerk to conceal their presence if Vanatta came looking for them.

Vanatta arrived roughly 20 minutes later, but the clerk refused to disclose whether the family was there.

Believing Vanatta had left the area, the family decided to leave the hotel with the 17-year-old son driving.

However, they spotted Vanatta’s truck returning to the property.

After exiting the hotel in their vehicle, the family was chased down, rammed, and forced off the road by Vanatta.

Vanatta then ordered his wife and the children into his truck at gunpoint while threatening to shoot them.

Once inside the vehicle, Vanatta punched his wife in the face, knocking her glasses off and sending her head into the window.

According to court records, Vanatta told the family, “I’ve got something for you when we get home.” One of the teenagers recorded the drive on a cell phone, capturing Vanatta making multiple death threats, including, “I’m going to shoot every one of you.”

Fearing they were being driven to their deaths, the older teenage son grabbed a box cutter and began to stab Vanatta.

During the struggle, the wife managed to seize Vanatta’s handgun and fired three or four warning shots to halt the violence.

The family scrambled out of the truck, ran to the hotel, called the police, and Vanatta drove off.

When police later apprehended Vanatta, he claimed he had “blacked out”.

The two teenage boys were present in the courtroom for sentencing, and the judge addressed them directly, saying he had no doubt that had it not been for their bravery, they, along with their mother and sister, would be dead.

Reports indicated that Vanatta demonstrated an “appalling lack of remorse” for the violence he inflicted on the victims in this case.

Judge Roesener sentenced Vanatta to the maximum of 20 years in prison, followed by two years on probation.

Prosecutor Lance Hamner said, “We are very pleased that Judge Roesener gave this dangerous criminal the maximum sentence under the law. Criminals like Vanatta are the reason maximum sentences are enacted. This is how we protect our community.”

Judge Roesener commented that the community is and will be much safer if he is not in it.

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