A 37-year-old Carmel man has pleaded guilty to a felony firearm charge stemming from a December road-rage altercation that began on Interstate 465 and ended with gunshots outside a home on West 97th Street. Thomas Ferguson entered the plea on Oct. 30, admitting to unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, while prosecutors agreed to dismiss three other charges filed after his arrest.
According to Current Publishing, the dismissed charges included criminal recklessness, intimidation and unlawful possession of a firearm by a domestic batterer. As part of the plea agreement, Ferguson faces a five-year prison sentence, with one year executed, four years suspended and two years of probation to follow. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 14, 2027.
The case traces back to an alleged road-rage altercation that began on Interstate 465 westbound, continued onto Michigan Road and ended at the 3700 block of West 97th Street, per the same outlet's reporting. That location matches where officers were first dispatched: as WRTV reported at the time, officers responded to a report of shots fired in the 3700 block of West 97th Street at around 3:35 a.m. on Dec. 21, 2025, after what police described as a road-rage incident on I-465 that traveled back to a residence.
What Ferguson Told Investigators
According to a probable-cause affidavit cited in the Current Publishing report, Ferguson told police that another driver had been following his girlfriend and that he fired two shots into the air to encourage that driver to leave the scene. No one was injured during the altercation, consistent with earlier reporting on the case.
Ferguson's arrest in December drew a heavy police response. WRTV reported that Carmel and Fishers SWAT teams executed search warrants on two adjacent homes after several attempts to make contact with people inside the suspected residence had failed.
Charges Shifted Between Arrest and Plea
The charges Ferguson ultimately admitted to differ from what was initially reported in the days after his arrest. Current Publishing's earlier coverage, cited in the youarecurrent.com report from December, stated Ferguson had been charged with criminal recklessness committed with a deadly weapon and intimidation, while WRTV's reporting at the time listed preliminary charges of unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm by a domestic batterer. Under the plea deal, only the firearm-by-a-serious-violent-felon charge stuck, with the recklessness, intimidation and domestic-batterer firearm charges all dismissed.
Ferguson's attorney, Ted Minch, declined to comment ahead of sentencing, according to Current Publishing. Ferguson had been arrested in December 2025 and, in the days following, was reported to be held in the Hamilton County Jail with bond set at $75,000.
