ORLANDO, Fla. – A 27-year-old woman was shot and killed during an apparent drug deal Wednesday night in Orange County, and the suspected shooter was arrested after an overnight SWAT standoff, according to sheriff’s office officials.
The shooting was reported around 10:10 p.m. Wednesday in the 1400 block of Grand Street near Orange Blossom Trail.
“I heard what I thought to be was like a tree branch falling. I looked out to see if it hit my mom’s car, but I just went back to playing my games,” one neighbor said. “Then I saw just a lot more lights, a lot more activity going on."
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said deputies discovered a victim, later identified as Bertice Taylor, suffering from a gunshot wound. Taylor was taken to a hospital and was pronounced dead, deputies said.
“They were still calling for him. The SWAT team was here at this point and they had the armored truck in here and all that," the neighbor added. "They started putting on gloves and that’s when they saw movement in the house and all their guns got drawn and that’s when the standoff took place.”
After the overnight SWAT standoff, the suspected shooter, identified by the Sheriff’s Office as Bruce Michael Brown was taken into custody around 4:30 a.m. Thursday, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Brown was arrested on charges of second-degree murder with a firearm and criminal mischief, which deputies say is related to damage he caused to a sheriff’s deputy cruiser.
Sheriff’s office officials said detectives believe the incident began as a drug deal, but no other details have been released.
We’re on the scene of breaking news overnight in Orange County. Deputies say a person was taken into custody after a deadly shooting on Grand Street overnight. The arrest came after an apparent standoff that ended around 4:30 a.m. pic.twitter.com/epDy3BDsPC
— Mark Lehman (@MarkLehman6) October 29, 2020