By Ella Malmgren
A 19-year-old man has been charged with shooting and killing three people in Pine Hills, and critically injuring two others.
On Feb. 20, 38-year old Nathacha Augustin was shot and killed around 11 a.m. in Pine Hills, a neighborhood in Orlando. Around 4 p.m., the shooter came back and fatally shot journalist Dylan Lyons and photographer Jesse Walden in the same location.
Afterwards, he went down the street and proceeded to shoot 9-year-old T’yonna Major and her mother. T’yonna’s mother has not been identified.
The 38-year-old woman, Dylan Lyons, and T’yonna Major died from their injuries. Jesse Walden and T’yonna’s mother were both critically injured.
19-year-old Keith Melvin Moses was detained later that day. After detaining him, homicide detectives that were present for the shooting of Augustin that morning identified him as the same shooter.
Nathacha Augustin was shot at 11 a.m. that morning on Hialeah Street. According to court documents, Augustin was in a car with her cousin when the shooter entered the car behind her and shot her.
Investigators say that the shooter fled the scene, then came back later that day, where Lyons and Walden were reporting on the shooting for Spectrum 13 News. The police had cleared the scene.
While they were in the news van, Lyons was shot in the passenger seat, and Walden was shot right next to the vehicle. Lyons was died due to his injuries, and Walden was critically injured.
“That vehicle was almost exactly in the same spot as the vehicle was from the homicide this morning. So it’s unclear why exactly they were targeted. And you know certainly we’re going to look into that, and we will definitely let you know,” Orange County Sheriff JohnMina said.
T’yonna Major and her mother were then shot in their home shortly after.
Police are unaware of a motive for any of these killings.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis initiated an audit for Florida State Attorney Monique Worrell, because he believes that she “allowed [Moses] to remain on the streets after multiple arrests.”
Moses is allegedly a known gang member, with a lengthy track record, including aggravated assault, burglary, and assault with a deadly weapon, among others.
However, the arrests in question occurred when Moses was a juvenile, and were not legal convictions.
The families of the victims spoke out in a meeting on March 2, sharing their feelings of grief and anger.
The families’ attorney, Mark NeJame, spoke on behalf of his clients, saying, “DeSantis and Scott have made time to take to a podium and issue a joint statement condemning the Office of the State Attorney, filled with half-truths and false propaganda.”
But according to NeJame, neither have reached out to the families to offer their condolences, and have instead used the situation as a “political talking point.”
Both families have shared their appreciation for Sheriff Mina, via NeJame.
Moses is currently in custody, was scheduled to appear in court, but his attorney waived that right due to his “behavior.”