ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Two men were killed and two more were also hospitalized after a shooting reported just past midnight at the address of a banquet hall near Pine Hills, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies responded at 12:08 a.m. Saturday to 2620 N. Hiawassee Road, the listed address of Unity Banquet Hall, locating a man who had been shot and was inside of a vehicle.
The three other men who deputies said were shot in connection to what prompted multiple 911 calls from the 2600 block self-transported to area hospitals, a news release states. Of the four victims, one of the men who self-transported — identified as Willie Alphonso Bell Jr., 28 — was pronounced dead at a hospital, two were in stable condition at last check and the man from the vehicle was in critical condition, the sheriff’s office said.
The man in critical condition died on Monday and was identified as Jonathan Lenard Frazier, 36.
The sheriff’s office said on Twitter that nobody stayed behind to speak with deputies about the shooting.
“Dozens of people – maybe more than 100 – were at that party, and someone saw or knows something,” the post reads.
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Charmaine Salhab owns a T-shirt shop next door to the banquet hall and said she knows one of the victims.
“When I heard that this morning, it was so disturbing that it’s so close to home,” Salhab said. “He’s fighting for his life. We need to be praying and asking God to keep him so he can have a good life with his family.”
When reached for comment, a representative from the banquet hall confirmed that an event was happening at the time of the shooting, adding they didn’t know when the banquet hall would reopen.
On June 24, 2023 at 12:08 am, deputies responded to a shooting call at 2620 N. Hiawassee Rd (Unity Banquet Hall). Four people were shot and 28-year-old Willie Alphonso Bell Jr. has died from his injuries. Dozens of people were at that party, and someone knows something. Please… pic.twitter.com/puiDKXZLpW
— Orange County Sheriff's Office (@OrangeCoSheriff) June 24, 2023
“I know a lot of people who use this hall, it’s a great hall. The person who owns it is a great person and for people to be doing this crime, it’s so senseless. They need to stop,” Salhab said.
Anyone with information is urged to call Crimeline at 800-423-8477. If your information leads to an arrest, you may be eligible for a reward.
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