On film, police officers in Orange County, Florida, took 19-year-old Keith Moses into custody. Moses was accused of shooting five people and killing three of them. On the video, police officers can be seen talking to the man who is accused of killing three people and telling him to get down.
He can’t breath—Moses yelled again as the cops dragged him to the ground. Before being tackled, Moses defied the cops’ instructions and lifted his arms to his sides. Let him go, he yelled as the cops slammed handcuffs on him.
Deputies pulled a pistol from Moses’ trouser leg as he continued to scream. It’s still hot, said one cop after receiving the firearm. As the killing spree started, Moses was in a vehicle with his cousin and a 38-year-old friend called Nathacha Augustin in Orlando’s Pine Hills area.
According to police, Moses fatally shot Augustin inside the car at 11 a.m., then left. Police say Moses went back to where Augustin was killed four hours later and shot Spectrum 13 reporters Dylan Lyons, 24, and Jesse Walden as they were sitting in an unmarked car and reporting on the first crime. Lyons, who was engaged to be married, died at a nearby hospital, while Walden, a photographer, survived the assault.
Moses’ murderous spree continued when he entered a neighboring residence and started shooting at 9-year-old T’Yonna Major and her mom. The girl, described as a cheerful aspiring gymnast, died from her injuries at a nearby hospital, while her mom was critically injured.
In a devastating GoFundMe message, her devastated dad, Tokiyo Major, grieved for his daughter. He wrote that to everyone who knew her, she was a light. She meant the world to them. She was an excellent student, finishing first in her third-grade class and reading at a fifth-grade level.
Orange County Sheriff John Mina said Moses was not communicating and did not offer a reason for any of the shootings. Police say that after he was arrested, he was first taken to the hospital because deputies thought he was high on drugs. Moses resumed fighting with hospital staff members as he arrived, forcing officers to control him once again. Sheriff Mina said that after being moved to a nearby stationhouse, he continued to fight cops.
Moses refused to speak to officers about the brutal murders and feigned to fall asleep at one point to avoid discussion, according to Sheriff Mina. In connection with Augustin’s death, he was charged with second-degree murder, and many more charges were to come. Sheriff Mina told the court that Moses had a long list of crimes on his record, including accusations of gun possession, violence, assault, and grand theft.
During a news conference, State Attorney Monique Worrell stood beside the sheriff and addressed opponents who questioned why Moses remained on the street considering his criminal history. Worrell said he had only been arrested once as an adult, in 2021, for having marijuana. The case was later dropped.
Keith Moses was caught with a loaded pistol that was “hot” to the touch by police officials. During this arrest, the deputies were placed in a difficult situation. They were on the trail of a guy suspected of murder and equipped with a lethal weapon. They needed to take the necessary measures to protect themselves from a possibly lethal danger.
Arrest of triple-murder suspect Keith MosesThis is the moment OCSO deputies apprehended Keith Moses, who shot five people on Feb. 22, killing three: 38-year-old Nathacha Augustin, 9-year-old T’yonna Major and Spectrum News 13 reporter Dylan Lyons. At 1:29 into the video, you will hear a deputy say, "There's a zero in his pocket." "Signal zero" means weapon. At 2:54 into the video, you will see the deputy pull the gun out of the suspect's pants. "Grab the zero," one deputy says. And the deputy who removes the gun says, "It's still hot." *This video contains profanity.
Posted by Orange County Sheriff's Office, Florida on Thursday, 23 February 2023
Handling hazardous suspects is commonplace for law enforcement professionals on a daily basis. They have to get into very dangerous situations with some of the most dangerous people. Every officer prays at the start of their shift that they will be able to come home safely at its conclusion.
