JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office has charged 23-year-old Tyss Harris and 25-year-old Talint Curtis with murder and armed burglary related to a fatal 2022 break-in. The charges stem from an investigation into an incident that took place in an apartment complex on Kernan Road.

The events unfolded on September 1, 2022, when officers responded to a reported shooting. Upon arriving, they encountered a tenant who recounted a harrowing encounter: three masked individuals had forcibly entered his apartment and opened fire. The tenant, in self-defense, returned fire.

Shortly after, police were alerted to a situation at a hospital on 103rd Street, where they discovered 23-year-old Melvin Keepler Jr., suffering from a gunshot wound. Unfortunately, Keepler Jr. succumbed to his injuries.

The Homicide Unit of JSO launched an extensive investigation into Keepler Jr.’s death. Detectives soon identified Keepler, along with Harris and Curtis, as the trio involved in the attempted burglary.

According to the arrest report, the apartment tenant, along with his girlfriend and their infant, had taken refuge in a bathroom as the intruders attempted to break down the door. In an act of defense, the tenant fired his weapon, striking Keepler Jr. Authorities stated that Harris and Curtis transported Keepler Jr. to the hospital, where they abandoned him outside.

Florida statute says that if multiple people are committing a felony together and one of them is killed, then the other people involved can be charged with that person’s murder.

An arrest warrant was obtained on June 24, 2025, for Harris, and he was taken into custody the same day.

Curtis was arrested in Bay County, Florida, on Feb. 24, 2026. He was transported back to Duval County and booked into the jail on Feb. 27.