ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — A 9-year-old girl and a television reporter were among the three people killed when a gunman went on a shooting rampage Wednesday in the Pine Hills community outside Orlando.
Orange County Sheriff John Mina said two other people were injured during the shooting, including a Spectrum News 13 photojournalist and the mother of the 9-year-old girl. Both were listed in critical condition as of Thursday morning.
The shootings of the news crew on the street, and the child and mother in their home, came after another deadly shooting was reported earlier in the day in the exact location, OCSO said. In the shooting earlier Wednesday, 38-year-old Nathacha Augustin was killed.
Early Thursday morning, Spectrum News 13 identified the reporter as 24-year-old Dylan Lyons and the injured photojournalist as Jesse Walden. Both were on the scene reporting about the shooting of Augustin when they were gunned down.
The 9-year-old victim was identified as T'yonna Major, who was shot in her home along with her mother, who survived the shooting with critical injuries.
“(Lyons) took his job very seriously. He loved his career. He loved what he did,” said Spectrum Sports 360 reporter and friend, Josh Miller. “He loved the community, telling the stories of people, reporting on the news, and he was just passionate about what he did.”
A memorial is growing in front of UCF Nicholson School of Communication and Media, where Lyons graduated from.
“You never think that things like this are going to happen and when it does it just shakes the entire community,” said Danielle Hendrix.
Hendrix felt compelled to visit the growing memorial for Lyons, who had a passion to tell stories that impacted local communities.
“Along with the first responders, journalists are often the first to run the scene and the goal is just to inform the community of what happened. I don’t think people really realize the gravity of what that is," Hendrix said.
Lyons former journalism professor said his future in journalism looked promising.
“He cared not just about advancing his own study's and his career but he cared about other journalism students in the program as well," said Rick Brunson.
Lyons was born and raised in Philadelphia. Before joining Spectrum News, he worked for a station in Gainesville.
Rachel Lyons, the reporter’s older sister, is raising money for his funeral in a GoFundMe account. She wrote that Lyons would have turned 25 in March. He is also survived by his parents and fiancée.
Following the shooting death of a member of our Spectrum News 13 crew, our parent company, Charter Communications, has released a statement. pic.twitter.com/oiL4nqLT3E
— Spectrum News 13 (@MyNews13) February 23, 2023
Investigators said Keith Melvin Moses, 19, is accused in both this case and the earlier shooting at that same location. Officials said he is now in custody.
“I want to acknowledge what a horrible day this has been for our community and our media partners,” Orange County Sheriff John Mina said Wednesday. “I work closely with all of you and know many of you and know 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.”
Mina said they don’t immediately have a motive for any of the shootings. Mina said the News 13 vehicle did not look like a typical news van with TV station markings.
Deputies had initially responded to the Pine Hills area, just northwest of Orlando, on Wednesday morning following reports of a woman in her 20s being shot.
Moses "was an acquaintance of the woman this morning, but as far as we know, had no connection to the reporters and no connection to the mother and the 9-year-old,” Mina said.
Mina said Moses is already facing a murder charge for the initial victim, and charges are expected soon for the other four victims. Moses’ criminal history includes gun charges, as well as aggravated battery, assault with a deadly weapon, burglary and grand theft offenses, the sheriff said.
“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,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Twitter.
“Please, please, say a prayer tonight for our co-worker who is in critical condition. And while you’re at it, please say a prayer for every victim of gun violence in this country,” Spectrum 13 journalist Celeste Springer said during her live on-air report.
The Society of Professional Journalists released a statement Thursday on the shooting of the Spectrum News 13 crew.
This horrific tragedy underscores the dangers journalists face every minute of every day. Journalists covering war zones are embedded with troops to keep them safe. But journalists covering their own communities don’t have those protections. It is always a shock when journalists become victims while covering their own communities. I hope Dylan’s loss and Jesse’s injuries strengthen appreciation for what we do to keep the public informed. We emphasize the importance of news organizations doing everything they can to keep their journalists in the field safe.
The Florida Association of Broadcast Journalists also released a statement Thursday that read in part:
Words alone cannot describe our overwhelming sadness following the loss of Spectrum 13 journalist Dylan Lyons, a 20-year-old woman, and 9-year-old girl in Orlando.
We are heartbroken to see another senseless act of gun violence claim more members of our community - including our fellow colleague who was dedicated to making a difference.
Our thoughts are with the families and the entire Spectrum News 13 newsroom affected by this tragedy, including photojournalist Jesse Walden who was injured in the shooting. We will continue to offer support during this difficult time....
The attack on our colleagues weighs heavily on our hearts. We are reminded of the fragility of life and again offer our deepest condolences to our colleagues and all of the families involved.
Worldwide 40 journalists were reported killed last year, plus another two this year before Wednesday, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Only one of those was in the United States.
This is a developing story; ABC Action News will provide updates when they are available.
