ORLANDO, Fla. – A 19-year-old man was trying to shoot a local rapper known as 9lokkNine when he opened fire at Mall at Millenia Thursday evening, according to the Orlando Police Department.
No one was injured in the shooting, which caused officers to swarm the area near the upscale mall’s food court.
Police said Trey’von Jaheim Graham, 19, shot at 20-year-old Jacquavius Smith, whose stage name is pronounced “Glock Nine” because the two men were involved in a dispute.
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A news release didn’t provide details about the nature of the dispute.
Authorities initially said four people were in custody Thursday after the shooting but they have since clarified that Graham and Smith were the only two arrested.
Graham was arrested on charges of attempted first-degree murder with a firearm and discharging a firearm in public while Smith was also arrested at the scene on an open warrant on charges of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a short-barreled rifle in connection with an unrelated shooting that happened in July.
In that case, a woman said she was at a home on Bleasdale Avenue the night of July 23 when her daughter started screaming for her to get down as multiple gunshots were fired at the home, according to the report.
Police said the woman and her children saw two black sedans park in the driveway and five to eight men got out and began shooting.
Records show the victim, who said she was in fear for her life, identified Smith as being one of the shooters.
Smith appeared before a judge Friday.
On Friday, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings addressed the recent violence in Orlando and in Orange County, which includes two children being shot and killed in separate drive-by shootings.
He unveiled his four pronged approach to helping combat violence. It includes:
- Early crime prevention
- Intervention strategies targeting at-risk youth
- Enforcing the laws and arresting those responsible for the crime
- Prosecuting the people arrested
Demings also appealed to the community to come forward with more information on the shooting deaths of 3-year-old Daquane Felix and 14-year-old Dennis Atkinson.
“If you look at this as if this was one of your family members, just perhaps you would have the compassion -- if you know something about the people who have been engaged in these activities to share that information,” Demings said.
According to Crimeline, fewer than 20 tips have been received in their cases.
Call 1-800-423-8477 (TIPS) to leave information, you can remain anonymous, and there is a $20,000 reward.
