US cleaning woman shot dead after arriving at wrong home

Question

A cleaning woman went to the wrong house and was shot through the door. The owner of the house didn't ask any questions and just shot her dead because of the stand your ground law in Indiana. The woman was not invading the home or causing any harm, but was killed.

Answer 1

This appears to be true based on similar reports from outlets like Reuters, the NYT, and the AP. According to the NYT, María Florinda Ríos Pérez de Velásquez and her husband, who own their own cleaning company in Whitestown, Indiana, arrived at the wrong house on Nov 5, where Maria was shot and killed. Reuters notes that "the husband, identified by the Indianapolis Star as Mauricio Velazquez, told an online news site that he and his spouse believed they were at the correct address and checked the location twice before approaching the house."

The AP reports that the case is still developing, and that police have turned over their findings to Boone County Prosecutor Kent Eastwood on Friday afternoon. Eastwood said "the decision on whether to file charges won’t be easy," and that "the case brings Indiana’s castle doctrine laws squarely into play."

Answer 2

The claim that a cleaning woman was shot dead after going to the wrong house is true. However, the "stand your ground" part is misleading. The BBC was used as the main source, and it is a reputable publication. It also cited statements from local police in Whitestown, Indiana, and the Boone County Prosecutor's Office. These are reliable primary and secondary sources.

When investigating the claim, it's common to see that the claim circulating online says the homeowner "shot her dead because of the stand-your-ground law." However, no official statement or legal filing has yet confirmed that the shooting was justified by that law. Police and prosecutors have emphasized that the investigation is ongoing and that misinformation about motives and the law are spreading online.

Multiple reputable outlets (BBC, CBS News, The Indianapolis Star) confirm the facts of the case. That being said, no credible outlet or law enforcement source (including these three) have stated that "stand your ground" was the reason the homeowner fired.

The story originates from official police statements and prosecutor updates in Boone County, Indiana. The "stand your ground" element came from reporters noting that Indiana's law could affect how the case is handled.

Overall, the claim is slightly misleading, because while it is true that a cleaning woman was shot and killed after arriving at the wrong home in Indiana, there is no evidence that the shooter invoked or acted under the stand-your-ground law. The case remains under investigation.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3k5qv21g1o

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/indiana-house-cleaners-family-demands-justice-after-shooting/

https://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2025/11/05/police-woman-shot-after-arriving-at-wrong-whitestown-address-work-cleaning-crew-heritage-shooting/87106796007/

Answer 3

When researching this claim, I found that a cleaning woman, Maria Florinda Rios Perez, was fatally shot in Indiana when arriving at the wrong house with her husband for work. Reports confirm that the shooter fired from inside as Perez was outside the home and never entered. Authorities are currently investigating under Indiana’s “castle doctrine” which has now evolved into the stand-your-ground law. This claim is mostly accurate but the statement that she was killed because of the stand your ground law is not yet confirmed.

There were no primary sources such as police transcripts or body cam footage that are public yet. However, news outlets (including Fox News) cite The Whitestown Police Department’s official statement which confirms that the husband and wife arrived at the wrong address and never entered the home. Another source that could be considered as primary is quotes taken from the husband who was there at the time. NBC quoted the husband in an article, focusing on his struggle after the shooting of his wife. Fox News also stated that he wanted “justice for his wife”.

Some secondary sources were the news articles I found from Fox News, NBC News, The New York Times, and the article found in the original claim. Fox notes that she was “fatally shot after showing up at the wrong home” and identifies her as a housecleaner in Whitestown, Indiana. They emphasize the police statement and may potentially have bias in the way that they may emphasize homeowner rights. NBC News adds some more emotional detail from the story, focusing on her family and confirms that she was outside the door. The New York Times confirms that a single shot was fired and there was no evidence of forced entry. Also, prosecutors are reviewing Indiana's castle doctrine. These two sources and the original claim may have biases by emphasizing victim impact and critique towards the system.

Overall, this claim is true. However, the investigation is still ongoing and all of the sources have only had police statements to work off of, no real investigation files.  The part of the claim that is not yet confirmed is whether she was killed due to the stand your ground laws.

Answer 4

This claim of a cleaning woman was shot is true but somewhat misleading. Maria Florinda Rios Perez de Velasquez was the victim who was fatally shot. According to AP News and ABC News, this event happened when Maria accidently came to the wrong address for a cleaning job and was shot by the homeowner in Whitestown. CBS News has reported that police confirmed she never even tried to enter and was still outside but the homeowner still decided to open fire through a closed door, hitting her and sadly killing her. But, KCTV5 states the misleading part of this claim was how she was killed because of the "stand your ground law" and prosecutors are still debating whether to involve that law into this case and see if charges will be pressed or not. This claim is mainly true and gets all the key components of the event but misleading portions are involved making this a bit misleading but overall true.

Answer 5

This is true, as confirmed by several news outlets, including the BBC and ABC. Not all the facts related to this ongoing investigation have been released, so a legal verdict is still not available. Maria Florinda Rios Perez arrived at the home in Whitestown, Indiana, before 7 am on November 5th. After circling the neighborhood with her husband, Mauricio Velazquez, in order to confirm the address, Maria and Mauricio approached the home to begin their cleaning service. Maria was then fatally shot through the unopened door. The inclusion of Indiana's defense laws here, however, is misleading. While Indiana is a "stand your ground state," there are still guidelines that must be followed. According to Purdue University's Law school, "Indianas stand-your-ground law provides that a person (1) is justified in using deadly force against someone (including a law enforcement officer) and (2) has no duty to retreat if the person has a reasonable belief that force is required in order to prevent any of the following: (1)Serious bodily injury to the defendant or a third person; (2)The commission of a forcible felony (one that involves the threat of force or involves risk of bodily injury); (3)The unlawful entry of the defendant’s home or curtilage (the area around their home) or their (occupied) vehicle; (4)Trespass or unlawful interference with property in the lawful possession of the defendant, a member of their immediate family, or a person whose property the defendant is authorized to protect (i.e., an employer protecting their employees); or (5)The hijacking (or threat of hijacking) of an airplane on the ground in Indiana or Indiana airspace. The shooter could be covered under 1, 2, 3 or 4 as a motivation before shooting. However, it would be hard to prove in a court of Law that they truly felt threatened, felt they were preventing a felony home invasion, or felt they were preventing trespass. Especially because Maria was shot through the door with no successful attempts to open it first.

The verdict in this case is not clear, and will not be until all the investigation is concluded and all facts have been released to the public.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3k5qv21g1o

https://www.purduegloballawschool.edu/blog/news/indiana-stand-your-ground-law

https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/whitestown-indiana-wrong-house-shooting-cleaner-dead

https://apnews.com/article/indiana-house-cleaner-shot-wrong-address-2068589a1c3de79c36d88430674fae78

Answer 6

This claim appears to be true. The person making this claim used a BBC article titled “US cleaning woman shot dead after arriving at wrong home”. There is no author or journalist listed but BBC is a widely trusted news source, mainly in the UK but also internationally. The BBC reported that the police have urged patience with concerns of spreading misinformation online. Boone Country prosecutor Kent Eastwood told the Indianapolis Star that the case is complace due to the language of the state’s stand-your-ground law. These laws are in place to allow an individual to protect themselves within reason to prevent death or immense harm. 

After some further research I found several other news articles about this case, one of them being The Guardian. It states that Maria Velasquez was a part of a cleaning crew that had gone to the wrong address and also mentions the “castle doctrine” laws. In a New York Post article, it states Maria and her husband Mauricio checked the address twice and circled the neighborhood— to make sure they were in the right place. Police also ruled out any suspicion that the couple was trying to break in and confirmed they were attempting to walk in a home they were hired to clean.