An Indiana man will spend the next two decades in prison after forcing his family into his truck at gunpoint and threatening to execute them all, a plot that was thwarted only when his teenage stepson stabbed him with a box cutter.
Robert Vanatta, 30, was sentenced on Thursday to 20 years in prison followed by two years of probation. The sentencing follows a trial that concluded on March 27, where a jury convicted Vanatta of 14 felony charges. His convictions include three counts of criminal confinement, four counts of intimidation, three counts of criminal recklessness, and single counts of strangulation, domestic battery in the presence of a child under 16, and neglect of a dependent.
The incident began on March 22, 2025, when Vanatta’s wife, their 5-year-old daughter, and her two teenage sons fled their Marion County home to escape him. Johnson County Prosecuting Attorney Lance Hamner stated that the family sought refuge at a Candlewood Suites hotel in Greenwood, Indiana.
According to court documents, the wife arrived at the hotel and asked the front desk clerk to hide their presence from Vanatta. Vanatta arrived roughly 20 minutes later, but the clerk refused to disclose whether the family was checked in.
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. Vanatta rammed their vehicle, forcing it off the road, before walking over to the driver’s side and attacking his teenage stepson.
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The teenager told police that Vanatta then forced the entire family into his own truck at gunpoint.
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 used a box cutter to repeatedly stab Vanatta. During the struggle, the wife managed to seize Vanatta’s handgun and fired three or four warning shots to halt the violence.
Vanatta pulled the truck over and allowed the family to exit. He then drove away, and the family ran back to the Candlewood Suites to contact law enforcement.
When police later apprehended Vanatta, he claimed he had “blacked out” during an altercation with his stepson.
At the sentencing hearing, Johnson County Circuit Court Judge Roesener commended the teenage boys for their bravery, stating that their decisive actions likely saved the lives of the entire family.
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