MARION COUNTY, Fla. – Calls to 911 made before and after the shooting death of Ajike Owens were released Thursday by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
Susan Lorincz, 58, faces a charge of manslaughter in the shooting death of Owens, 35, on June 2.
The arrest affidavit from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office shows Lorincz had frequent issues with the children in the neighborhood, not just the children of Ajike Owens.
The first call to 911 comes from Lorincz prior to the shooting. The woman can be heard complaining about children, claiming some of them were threatening her.
“There are several kids out there right now and I’m fearing for my life,” Lorincz said to the 911 dispatcher.
Hear the call to dispatchers in the media player below:
Neighbors told deputies that Lorincz often insulted children, using racial slurs, for playing in a field near her apartment that she believed to be hers, even though the neighbors said it was a common area for everyone’s use.
In the 911 call, Lorincz claimed the children were coming up to her home.
“I just don’t like them coming around my house,” she can be heard saying the call. “They’re coming on to my deck, my patio and it’s telling me, ‘Get up, get up,’ when I’m watching TV. They have no business over here.”
At the end of the call, the dispatcher encourages Lorincz to keep her doors and windows locked, adding that an officer would be dispatched as soon as possible.
“What’s gonna happen is (the children’s) mom is gonna go out, wait for the officer on lawn and say, ‘Oh my god, (Lorincz) just threatened (my) kids,’ which just isn’t true,” Lorincz said to the dispatcher just before the call ended.
According to investigators, Owens ultimately ended up going to Lorincz’s apartment to confront the accused shooter about her treatment of the children.
One of the victim’s children told deputies he left an electronic tablet in the field and went to retrieve it when he saw Lorincz holding it. She threw the tablet and a pair of roller skates at the boy, according to the affidavit. She also used an umbrella to swing toward the child, deputies said.
The affidavit and other records show Lorincz had several run-ins with Owens regarding her children playing in the common area over the past year. Calls to the sheriff’s office show Lorincz complained about children trespassing on her property, but it was always determined they had really just been in the common area.
Ultimately, Lorincz shot through the door of her apartment, hitting and killing Owens, according to investigators.
Lorincz then called 911 after the gunfire.
Hear the call to dispatchers in the media player below. Warning, the audio may be disturbing to some listeners:
“A woman was screaming and yelling and she was trying to break down my door,” Lorincz told the dispatcher in the recording. “I didn’t know what to do. I grabbed my gun and I shot at the door.”
Lorincz first told deputies that she bought the gun used in the shooting, a Remington .380, a year ago for protection after an incident with Owens. However, according to the affidavit, Lorincz later told deputies that while she and Owens were not friendly, the mother of four had never threatened violence against her.
In the call, Lorincz can be heard claiming Owens “came after me several times.”
Witnesses and bystanders also called 911 following the shooting.
Hear the call to dispatchers in the media player below. Warning, the audio may be disturbing to some listeners:
The calls portray a frantic scene as people tried to determine what had happened while also trying to keep Owens’ children away from the property where their mother had been shot.
“We just heard a gunshot. We see his mom laying in the grass but nobody wants to go over there. We ain’t trying to get shot,” one caller can be heard saying to a dispatcher.
Another caller identifies the property where the shooting happened as belonging to “the old lady who always calls the cops over here.”
Hear the call to dispatchers in the media player below. Warning, the audio may be disturbing to some listeners:
It would be several days after the shooting on June 2 before Lorincz was arrested.
The sheriff’s office delayed arresting Lorincz because of her claims of shooting because she felt in “mortal danger,” which is in line with Florida’s Stand Your Ground laws.
However, when Lorincz told deputies in the second interview that Owens’ actions were not “reasonable or prudent,” deputies asked why Lorincz used those specific words.
That’s when Lorincz admitted to researching self-defense laws as recently as the day of the interview, and “possibly” researching stand-your-ground laws in the past.
Deputies also said Lorincz’s timeline of events contradicted the timeline of calls to 911
Lorincz was arrested on Tuesday and faces charges of manslaughter with a firearm, culpable negligence, battery and two counts of assault in the death of Ajike Owens.
Lorincz faced a judge on Thursday. Prosecutors told a judge Thursday they planned to file a pre-trial detention motion in the case and another hearing was set for July 11. The judge did not rule on bond, which means Lorincz will remain on no-bond status.
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