Gunfire Erupts at a Miller Beach Airbnb With Multiple Neighbors Houses, Garages and Cars Struck

"Miller Beach Vacation Rentals" Property at Juniper and Howard Turns Entire Neighborhood Into a “Shooting Gallery”

Dec 05, 2023

Author: Friends of Miller

The tranquility of the quiet corner of the Northwest part of Miller Beach (Gary, Indiana), West of Marquette Park, was shattered on a recent Saturday night at Howard and Juniper after 10:30 PM (one online video suggest the shooting began at 10:55) on the 25th of November when over a “hundred” shots were fired by multiple guests of a local Airbnb.

The attackers fired within the dwelling and later, at neighboring houses, garages and cars while fleeing the scene at “high rates of speed,” according to local residents who witnessed the shoot-out.

Miraculously, no one was reported injured or killed.

“A Sleepy Corner of Miller Beach”

Until the incident, one resident that has lived in Miller for decades described the area as “sleepy, nature loving and close knit.”

Highly diverse, the neighborhood features a significant 55+ demographic (in addition to a number of families), including numerous retirees who have lived in their homes for decades, including retired teachers, military, police, fire, as well as skilled tradesmen from the local mills and manufacturing industry, not to mention professionals and local business owners.

The quiet neighborhood on the dunes, lagoon and lake, a qualified opportunity zone (given neighboring economic challenges in the area), is almost entirely single family homes, the majority of which are owner occupied.

On a typical day, different residents can be seen walking their dogs, hiking to the beach, jogging on the trails, tending to their gardens and volunteering to preserve the dune ecosystem, including the adjacent National Park.

And, of course, helping out neighbors.

“We check in on each other here,” describes one long-time resident. “It really is a lovely and caring, if quiet corner of Miller Beach, surrounded by amazing nature.”

In addition to those living in the neighborhood, a number of smaller Airbnbs dot the streets, some providing supplementary income to those who also reside in the area.

But one Airbnb (which is also advertised on VRBO and its own site, Miller Beach Vacation Rentals) is a large two family dwelling, owned by non-residents, who use the property for commercial purposes.

Neighbors describe Miller Beach Vacation Rentals as a “distributed Airbnb hotel network capable of accommodating over 100 guests at any one-time,” according to data from the firm’s website.

This particular property, the “Dream Retreat,” advertises two above-ground units including a smaller apartment and a larger house, capable of accommodating 6 and 27 overnight guests, respectively, in the same single family house, according to the marketing literature on the units.

Residents have noted parties with “75 or more guests,” at any one time, however, during parties, with dozens of non-resident cars “illegally parked on the street.”

They report that guests of the Airbnb in question have “driven over resident’s lawns, lighted the dunes on fire with fireworks, continuously parked illegally, blocked street access and aggressively intimidated neighbors.”

War on Juniper and Howard: “Fully Automatic Gunfire”

To this list we can now add: engaged in duneland warfare.

A witness to the affair, reports that “guests at the Airbnb were involved in a gun battle both inside the Airbnb and on the streets surrounding it.”

Video supposedly showing the shooting from the interior of the Airbnb has been posted on YouTube.

Retired police and military residents described the gunfire outside the house as including “all calibers” including illegally converted fully automatic pistols and rifles capable of firing 750 or more rounds per minute.

Shell casings and bullets recovered from the scene by residents (see picture) indicate that both pistol and rifle (possibly 300 BLK based on bullet weight and forensic analysis by a local sportsman) were involved.

According to another witness statement, “at about 11:15 pm [following two initial volleys of fire inside the Airbnb] all the cars that were parked in front and beside the Airbnb left at a very high speed, accelerating noisily.”

The witness reports that “they accelerated to at least 60 mph (in a 25 mph zone) while side-swiping parked cars and shooting handguns at houses, garages and parked cars on the two lane road.”

Not a Tesla “Cybertruck”: a resident’s car following the shoot-out

In total, at least 60 shell casings were recovered by police, with one resident noting “hundreds of rounds” fired throughout the event.

Damage to property was recorded by over half a dozen local homeowners.

One traumatized homeowner noted that she “has moved her bedroom to the other side of her house, away from the street,” as a result of the incident, after a bullet penetrated the master bedroom of her property.

Another resident notes that “the engine block of my car was hit, likely totaling the vehicle.”

Non-Resident Airbnb / VRBO Owners Have No Comment

“More and more people are renting large Airbnbs to hold parties in Miller Beach. It seems they are renting them for drug deals or target practice now, too,” one of the residents remarked.

The owners of the Aibnb / VRBO, Hilary and Jim Pappas (who run Miller Beach Vacation Rentals), declined to comment for the article.

As of press time, they failed to offer any apologies or explanation of the shooting to community members who met recently to discuss the incident.