The suspect in a mass shooting last month in central Florida was shot dead by a police officer after a prolonged chase and a car take, officials said.
The car, driven by 21-year-old Alex Green, eventually crashed into a business in Winter Haven. Lakeland Police Chief Sammy Taylor said it was just a short drive from Lakeland, where 11 people were injured in a Jan. 30 shooting.
“We are quite confident that he was indeed involved; To what extent we don’t know yet,” Taylor said.
Taylor said detectives expected to bring Greene on an outstanding burglary warrant to talk about the Jan. 30 shooting in a neighborhood near the city of Lakeland, about 30 miles east of Tampa.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said that as investigators from the Lackland Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement monitored, Green got into a pickup truck and began to drive away. news conference.
Lakeland police were in pursuit along a heavily traveled road.
Police Capt. Eric Harper was driving an unmarked vehicle and tried to stop Green “so as not to chase us down a very busy street,” Judd said.
He made a successful pothole maneuver and Green exited the vehicle and began running into traffic.
Judd said, “Why didn’t he and the captain run, it’s just the grace of God, because traffic was everywhere.”
Judd said that when Green realized he could not run, he ran to a restaurant where a woman was standing outside her car with the doors open. The woman saw Green, slammed the passenger door and tried to close the driver’s side door.
Judd said Green pushed the woman away and got into the car. Police said in a news release Tuesday that Harper drew his gun, ordered Green to stop and show his hands.
According to the release, “Captain Harper was also loudly identifying himself as a police officer.”
“The suspect takes off in his car, turns to Captain Harper, who shoots six times,” Judd said. The car drives down the road, passes through flower beds and crashes into a building.”
Law enforcement officers pulled Green from the car and began performing CPR. He was taken to the hospital, where he was declared brought dead.
Judd said, “No one else was injured in the chase, for which we are all grateful.”
Judd said Green had 10 felony convictions prior to 2013, including fleeing to avoid law enforcement, battery on a law enforcement officer, possession of a weapon and resisting arrest. He had outstanding warrants for conspiracy to commit theft and burglary.
During a search of the vehicle Green was driving when he initially fled from officers, investigators found 28 grams of cocaine, marijuana, a Glock .357 handgun and $2,813 in cash, according to a news release sent out Tuesday. Green had $5,833 in cash.
The investigation of the shooting is being conducted by the Area Fatalities Task Force.
Two people were seriously injured in the January 30 shooting, while the other eight victims’ wounds were not considered life-threatening. Police said the victims were between 20 and 35 years old.
Police said that afternoon a vehicle passed through the neighborhood and the suspects began shooting through all four windows of the car. Authorities did not provide details about any other suspects in the shooting.
Authorities said they believe the shooting was a “targeted attack”.