COCOA, Fla. – An arrest has been made in the shooting of man found injured in Cocoa last month, according to police.
The Cocoa Police Department said Juan Christian, 40, was arrested on an attempted second-degree murder charge.
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The department said officers responded to the area of State Road 50 and U.S. 1 around 12:45 a.m. on Feb. 28 when the man reported he had been shot. Officers later learned the shooting occurred in the 1200 block of Jackson Street.
According to an arrest affidavit, police said the victim told officers he was arguing with three people when a fight broke out and he was shot. The victim’s girlfriend told police she drove her boyfriend to where the shooting happened and was in her car when she heard gunshots.
The girlfriend told police a man ran up to her car after gunshots broke out and reached into her car saying, “I have to take this,” and took her purse, according to the affidavit.
Police said they received an anonymous tip the same day that Christian was the shooter.
Officers said the man was shot in the chest once and twice in the back of the head but the bullets “appeared to bounce off of his skull,” which led police to believe a small caliber firearm was used in the shooting. The victim went to police on March 9 to positively identify the suspect as initially he was fearful of retaliation.
Along with attempted second-degree murder, Christian faces charges of aggravated battery with a firearm and possession of a firearm as a felon.