A gunman opened fire at a TV crew reporting on a murder near Orlando, Florida, U.S., he committed hours earlier, killing one and wounding the other. Shortly after the assault on the journalists he fatally shot a 9-year-old girl and wounded her mother in a nearby home, authorities reported.
The suspect, identified as Keith Melvin Moses, 19, was detained as a suspect in both those attacks and was formally charged in the killing hours earlier of a woman in her 20s, a shooting that the two journalists were covering when they came under fire, authorities said.
🚨#BREAKING: Multiple victims including media reporters have been shot ⁰
📌#Pinehills | #Florida ⁰
Multiple people shot along with News reporters and photographers 'shot at' while covering deadly shooting that happened this morning. Police say a passenger fired numerous shots… https://t.co/WwwVb7z6tS pic.twitter.com/x5u5ei32Nj
— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) February 22, 2023
Orange County Sheriff John Mina described the two journalists as a reporter and a photographer for central Florida cable TV outlet Spectrum News 13, which is owned by Charter Communications.
Moses was arrested shortly after the assaults on the TV news team and the mother and daughter, about a block away from each other, in the Orlando suburb of Pine Hills, Mina said.
He added that the suspect was armed with a pistol when taken into custody and has a lengthy criminal record that included arrests on charges of firearms offenses, assault with a deadly weapon, burglary, and grand theft.
Mass shooting in Florida today
Watch how fast it disappears pic.twitter.com/NFKUsAthnA
— Jack Posobiec 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) February 23, 2023
“This is another tragic reminder that journalism is a dangerous business and that criminals and those that are the subject of reporting can become violent toward reporters who are doing their jobs,” said the National Press Club.
The organization urged all reporters in the field to take extra precautions and redouble efforts to work safely.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre posted a message of condolence on Twitter.
Our hearts go out to the family of the journalist killed today and the crew member injured in Orange County, Florida, as well as the whole Spectrum News team.
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@PressSec) February 23, 2023
“Our hearts go out to the family of the journalist killed today and the crew member injured in Orange County, Florida, as well as the whole Spectrum News team,” she said.