Man accused of killing Orlando TV reporter was a gang member, officers say

The 19-year-old accused of fatally taking pictures three folks in Florida, together with a TV journalist and a 9-year-old lady, was a “identified gang member” who had a prolonged rap sheet that included arrests on grand theft and home violence expenses, in keeping with officers and his felony background.

Keith Melvin Moses was taken into custody Wednesday night following the carnage within the Pine Hills space, a group of round 66,000 simply west of Orlando.

Moses, armed with a Glock 40, allegedly fatally shot a girl discovered round 11 a.m., returned to the scene hours later and opened hearth on a TV reporter and a photojournalist earlier than getting into a house and taking pictures a girl and her 9-year-old daughter. The primary girl, the TV reporter and the 9-year-old died. The lady’s mom and the photojournalist have been hospitalized in crucial situation.

Orange County Sheriff John Mina stated the suspect was a “identified gang member” however the shootings weren’t gang-related.

However questions stay as to the motive. Mina stated that the reason for the shootings is underneath investigation and the suspect has been uncooperative thus far.

Suspect has a prolonged felony historical past relationship again to age 14

Moses had a rap sheet relationship again to January 2018, when he was 14, and stretching by 2022, in keeping with his felony file by the Florida Division of Legislation Enforcement. 

Probably the most severe of his expenses embody grand theft, battery – home violence, and armed theft.

He was arrested in January 2018 on a grand theft of a motorcar cost that was amended to misdemeanor trespassing in Orange County Courtroom. He pleaded no contest and was sentenced in February 2018 to a 12 months of group management, which is basically home arrest. Underneath group management, an individual is confined to the house outdoors of labor, faculty, public service hours and different officer-approved actions, in keeping with the Florida Division of Corrections. 

That very same month, Moses was arrested and charged with home violence battery, contact or strike, information present. He pleaded no contest and was sentenced to a concurrent 12 months of group management. 

In 2015, he was arrested on a housebreaking cost, pleaded not responsible, and the case was dismissed. 

Within the following years, he had arrests after allegedly resisting an officer and violating his imposed launch circumstances, in keeping with information. He was rearrested a number of instances on failure to seem in courtroom expenses.

Moses was arrested in 2018, charged with theft with a weapon, which was amended in courtroom to tried theft with a firearm. He pleaded not responsible and was ordered to a concurrent sentence of “low-risk residential restrictiveness dedication stage.”   

In 2021, he was arrested on a violation of his imposed circumstances and charged with possessing lower than 20 grams of marijuana, a misdemeanor. The case was finally dropped.

He was most just lately rearrested final April 28 by Orlando police on a cost of failure to seem in courtroom, in keeping with publicly accessible information.

Monique H. Worrell, state lawyer for the Ninth Judicial Circuit, addressed his juvenile convictions Thursday.

“There was a variety of dialog, ‘Effectively, why was he on the road?'” she stated. “Florida regulation prohibits me from discussing the small print of any juvenile disposition … however I’ll say that juvenile tendencies usually are not certified as convictions.”

She defined that underneath present regulation, the Division of Juvenile Justice has jurisdiction when a toddler is sentenced.

“Which means the courtroom nor the State Lawyer’s Workplace has a say in what finally is this system or the size of time {that a} little one is saved in a program,” Worrell stated.

She famous that the suspect’s solely grownup offense was a marijuana possession. Her workplace didn’t cost him as a result of when the amount is that low, “the Florida Division of Legislation Enforcement doesn’t check the substance and which means the State Lawyer’s Workplace can’t show the case.”

She stated she has proposed to legislators that the foundations be modified relating to juvenile justice to increase the time frame that kids will be held in juvenile packages.

How the shootings unfolded

Moses was arrested Wednesday night, charged within the preliminary slaying. Mina stated Thursday he’s assured the suspect shall be charged in subsequent killings.

Moses shot the lady discovered round 11 a.m., later recognized as Nathacha Augustin, 38, as she was sitting in a automobile with a pal, Mina stated Thursday.

Moses then returned to the scene about 4 hours later round 4 p.m., and shot at Spectrum Information 13 reporter Dylan Lyons and photojournalist Jesse Walden who have been in or close to a automobile, Mina stated. Lyons was killed and Walden was hospitalized in crucial situation Wednesday night.

Moses then walked into a house within the space and shot the mom and daughter. The kid, T’yonna Main, died, and her mom, who has not been recognized, was in crucial situation late Wednesday.

It’s not clear what motivated the taking pictures. Mina stated that Moses was an “acquaintance” of Augustin, and had no connection to the journalists, the mom or T’yonna.

Mina stated he was recognized by witnesses because the suspect within the shootings and video footage additionally caught him on the scene on the time of the carnage. 

He was discovered by deputies, and was uncooperative when he was taken into custody.

Officers recovered a gun — the Glock 40 computerized handgun discovered empty and “sizzling to the contact” — believed for use within the taking pictures, Mina stated. The sheriff stated it isn’t clear how he obtained that firearm.

He stated that Moses was taken to a hospital claiming he was injured, the place he fought with hospital workers and needed to be restrained. When he was transported to the sheriff’s workplace for an interview, he “pretended to be asleep” and was not cooperative. At one level, he bodily resisted officers and needed to be subdued, Mina stated.

Mina stated Thursday that the suspect “is just not speaking to us.”