Woman ‘randomly shooting at vehicles’ arrested in death of Orange County mother, deputies say

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A woman has been arrested after a mother was found shot to death in crashed car in Orange County last week, according to the sheriff’s office.

Angila Baxter, 56, was booked Wednesday and faces a murder charge in the death of 27-year-old Nekaybaw Collier, deputies said.

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According to a tweet from the sheriff’s office, Baxter “was randomly shooting at vehicles” on Jan. 12 when the victim was driving nearby. Collier was hit by the gunfire and was found in a crashed car less than a mile away from home, in the 5200 block of Powers Drive.

Collier had been shot in her abdomen, with one bullet hole observed on the driver’s side of her vehicle, the affidavit states. She was later pronounced dead at a hospital, according to investigators.

Less than half an hour after deputies responded to Collier’s scene, a deputy in the area of North Pine Hills Road and North Lane was flagged down by a man who said a woman in a red SUV “sitting in the middle of the road” was “shooting at people driving past her,” reporting his own vehicle was struck, according to the affidavit.

A third victim later approached deputies saying that while driving on White Heron Drive, a woman in a red SUV stopped next to her and said “Why the (expletive) are you following me? Who are you?” before the victim drove off and heard two thumps from the back of her vehicle, later determined to be from gunfire.

Baxter was identified from a photographic lineup by a witness who lives in the area and saw the woman shoot at the second and third victims’ vehicles, deputies said. An arrest warrant was signed Jan. 14 for charges of shooting into a vehicle; Baxter was apprehended Jan. 17 on that warrant and interviewed, the affidavit states.

“My heart goes out to (the victim). That’s terrible. That shouldn’t happen to anybody,” nearby resident Billy Reeves told News 6.

He said he saw the scene on the day of the shooting.

“It’s crazy how people can take matters into their own hands and hurt anybody that they choose to,” Reeves said. “It’s sad. It’s scary.”

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Investigators noted the latter two shootings occurred near Baxter’s home on White Heron Drive. Deputies said they found several guns in Baxter’s home, including a Taurus .38 special revolver.

According to the affidavit, Baxter told investigators that she shot at the vehicles because she thought they were following her and she was trying to “scare them” away.

Thursday, evidence analyzed by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement showed the bullet recovered from Collier’s body had been fired from Baxter’s Taurus, the affidavit states. Upon being shown a photo of Collier, Baxter told investigators she didn’t know her.

Collier’s family, friends and neighbors gathered for a vigil Thursday to remember the mother of two. Collier’s mother, Deshema McCoy, spoke to News 6 at the vigil.

“I started calling (Collier), but I had something in my spirit, told me something was not right,” McCoy said.

After the tragedy, McCoy suggested the city and county do more to keep residents safe.

“I believe in the inner city in general, not just on Powers Drive, but in the Pine Hills area, there should be more cameras,” McCoy said.

Baxter faces charges of aggravated assault with a firearm, second-degree murder with a firearm and two counts of shooting into a vehicle, booking records show. On her first appearance in court, she was given no bond amount for the murder charge, court records show.

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