One of two members of a Spectrum News 13 Orlando crew who were shot while at the scene of a homicide investigation on Wednesday afternoon has died, according to Orange County Sheriff’s.
No names have been released yet.
Investigators also responded to a residence on Harrington Drive where a 9-year-old girl and her mother were found shot around the same time. The girl later died, said Orange County Sheriff John Mina.
Both shootings were reported at around 4:05 p.m.
“I want to acknowledge what a horrible day this has been for our community and our media partners,” Mina said to a room of reporters. “I work closely with all of you and know many of you and know the the very difficult job that you do and also the very important job that you do for our community and for law enforcement. No one in our community — not a mother, not a 9-year-old and certainly not news professionals — should become the victim of gun violence in our community.”
The two Spectrum News employees were reporting on an Orange County Sheriff’s Office investigation into a Pine Hills homicide that was discovered around 11 a.m.
Investigators said one person has been taken into custody.
“So we have detained the person believed to be responsible for the murder this morning as well as the shootings this afternoon,” said Mina. “He is 19-year-old Keith Melvin Moses. He is being formally charged in the murder from this morning, and we expect additional charges for the shootings of the four people this afternoon.”
“So, the suspect is not saying much right now,” Mina said. “It is unclear if he knew they were news media or not. We’re still trying to work all that out.”
The motivations of the shooting are still being determined, he said. The Sherif said the department will be looking into whether the two journalists were targeted.
“(Moses) was an acquaintance of the woman this morning, but as far as we know, (he) had no connection to the reporters and no connection to the mother and the 9-year-old,” he added.