Four arrested after Ocala drive-by shooting; two already charged in Belleview death case
Two teenagers arrested earlier this month in connection with the accidental shooting death of a friend in Belleview have been arrested again, this time on charges that they were involved in a late-night, drive-by shooting in Ocala.
Shortly before 11:30 p.m. Wednesday, Ocala police were in the 2200 block of North Pine Avenue when they heard numerous gunshots nearby. Officer Jacob Zanino saw a four-door Mercedes speeding north from Northwest Fourth Avenue and east onto Northwest 20th Street. The car did not stop at a four-way stop sign and the officer pursued the vehicle, according to a press release from Ocala police.
Zanino stopped the car in the 300 block of Northwest 20th Street. Officer Roxana Cespedes joined in the traffic stop and, approaching the car, saw four people inside.
Belleview case: Boy, 16, was fatally shot when he and friend tested bulletproof vest
Jurors: Ocala jury finds landlord guilty of second-degree murder in 2019 shooting death of tenant
Unsuccessful: 0 for 23: Police say accused vehicle burglar failed almost two dozen times before arrest
The officers saw an empty pistol holster and what appeared to be a rifle butt. All of the occupants were removed from the car.
Three of the four were juveniles – two 17-year-olds and a 16-year-old – and the fourth was identified as 19-year-old Jarrett Vining Jr. The Star-Banner is withholding the juveniles' names because of their ages.
Inside the car, officers recovered an AR-15-style rifle, a Glock 33 .357-caliber pistol, a Glock 42 .380-caliber pistol, a Taurus 9mm pistol and a shell casing, according to the press release. Officers said the four young men did not have a concealed weapons permit.
During their investigation, police officials were told about a shooting in the 1700 block of Northwest Third Avenue. A caller said a vehicle drove up and people inside fired shots at a residence.
The vehicle that officers stopped matched the description of the one involved in the drive-by shooting, police said.
When officers went to that residence, they were told that a vehicle had driven past, then returned. The driver and front passenger both fired shots at the residence.
The vehicle drove away after the shooting and witnesses called 911, officers said. No one was injured.
At the scene, Detective Brandon Sirolli found numerous shell casings that he said were consistent with the guns found inside the stopped car.
Ocala police suggest a possible motive for the shooting
One 17-year-old boy was taken to AdventHealth Ocala hospital for treatment, officers said. He was treated and later released. The others were taken to the OPD for interviews.
Police said the shooting might have been retaliation for a shooting earlier in the day.
Multiple criminal charges lodged
Vining was charged with shooting into an unoccupied dwelling, possession of a concealed firearm and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Marion County Jail records show he was released after posting a $27,000 bond.
One 17-year-old boy was charged with possession of a concealed firearm. The other 17-year-old boy was charged with discharging a firearm from a vehicle within 1,000 feet of a person, shooting into an unoccupied dwelling, possession of a concealed firearm and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
The 16-year-old boy was charged with possession of a concealed firearm.
The Belleview case remains pending
The two 17-year-old boys were charged on April 7 in reference to the death of 16-year-old Christopher Leroy Broad. Belleview officers charged one with aggravated manslaughter of a child with a firearm. The other was charged with providing false information to a law enforcement official.
Both were charged as adults by the State Attorney's Office. They posted bond and were released from jail pending resolution of their criminal cases.
In that incident, Belleview police officials said the victim was wearing a bulletproof vest when one of the 17-year-old boys fired multiple shots at the vest. One bullet struck the victim in the upper body, a part that was not covered by the vest.
"Though I'm extremely proud of the vigilance our police officers had during this shooting incident, I'm also very alarmed that just a few weeks ago, two of these teenagers were involved in a manslaughter case in Belleview that ended another teen's life." Ocala Police Chief Mike Balken said in prepared remarks.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com.
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Three teens, one adult charged after drive-by shooting in Ocala, Florida