Inset: Tommy Lagree (Orange County Sheriff”s Office). Background: The 4900 block of Keith Place in Orlando, Florida (Google Maps).
A Florida teenager is facing serious legal charges after allegedly shooting a bicyclist in the head following a marijuana session in a parked van. The incident has shocked the local community and raised concerns about youth violence and gun possession.
The suspect, 15-year-old Tommy Lagree Jr., is currently detained by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. He is charged with second-degree murder and illegal possession of a firearm by a minor. Despite the charges being officially filed only recently, authorities report that Lagree surrendered to police shortly after the incident occurred in September.
The shooting took place on September 26, around 6 p.m., while Lagree and at least two acquaintances were in a parked van located in the 4900 block of Keith Place in Orlando. According to the sheriff’s office, the group was smoking marijuana inside the vehicle.
During this time, Lagree reportedly displayed a Taurus 9mm handgun he had tucked in his waistband, as detailed in an arrest affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime. Tragically, the situation escalated when 17-year-old Jahriel Huertas arrived at the scene. Authorities allege that Lagree shot Huertas in the head, leading to chaos as those present in the van fled the scene.
The friends were smoking marijuana, and Lagree was showing them a a Taurus 9mm handgun he had in his waistband, according to an arrest affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime.
At some point, 17-year-old Jahriel Huertas came upon the scene, and Lagree shot him in the head, authorities said. The individuals who were in the van then all took off running, according to law enforcement.
Deputies were called to the scene, and, when they arrived, found Huertas “lying on the roadway on top of a bicycle suffering from a gunshot wound to the head,” according to the affidavit.
The victim was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Witnesses reported seeing several individuals running from the van, and a law enforcement helicopter located the residence where at least two of them went after the shooting. Deputies responded and eventually detained those individuals.
Not long after the shooting, Lagree “arrived with his attorney, who advised deputies that Lagree had shot someone and was turning himself in,” according to the charging document. The handgun was also seized.
Two of the individuals who were with Lagree before the shooting identified him as the shooter, deputies said.
It is unclear what investigators believe his motive may have been.
Lagree has been charged as an adult. He is expected in court on Dec. 1.
