Inset: Brayden Raul Gomez (Bay County Jail). Background: The area on Wildwood Road where Gomez allegedly killed his 64-year-old Lyft driver (WMBB).
A teenager from Florida, aged 17, has been apprehended on allegations of murdering his Lyft driver. The motive behind the fatal shooting of the 64-year-old arose after the driver reportedly made a comment regarding the teenager’s mother.
Brayden Raul Gomez has been detained since Saturday, facing a charge of open murder in connection with the death of William Robert McArthur, as authorities have disclosed. As detailed in a press release by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded around 2:24 a.m. on Saturday to a 911 call concerning a shooting incident at the crossroads of Wildwood Road and Emerald Cove Street, located approximately 120 miles from Tallahassee.
Upon arriving at the scene, patrol deputies located the victim, later identified as McArthur, who was “in the road suffering from a gunshot wound.”
McArthur was immediately transported to a nearby hospital, where he later died from his wounds. Deputies indicated that McArthur’s vehicle was discovered on the same road, roughly 100 yards further north from where his body was recovered.
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Deputies were soon joined by detectives with the office’s Criminal Investigations and Crime Scene Units to process the crime scene. Inside of the vehicle, investigators said they found blood and bullet holes, leading to Wildwood Road being closed for several hours.
“A witness stated they observed a man flee the scene and scale a fence, firing as he fled,” the release states. “The suspect ran into the Woodlawn neighborhood. Deputies and investigators began an intense search of the area. The suspect was quickly identified as 17 year old Brayden Raul Gomez, a resident of Bay County. Gomez was located on Dorothy Avenue and taken into custody.”
Following an interview with Gomez, detectives said McArthur was working as a Lyft driver and was driving Gomez to a requested destination when the teen pulled out a gun and shot him in the head.
Court documents obtained by Panama City, Florida NBC affiliate WJHG provided additional details about what authorities believed happened between Gomez and McArthur.
According to the report, when investigators noticed the “Lyft” sign in McArthur’s car, they contacted the company and were able to get information on his last passenger, who was identified as Gomez. Police soon learned his mother’s address and units immediately responded to the scene. There, investigators said they recovered clothing with a red substance on it that came back positive for human blood.
Gomez reportedly returned to his mother’s residence while authorities were still there and he was taken into custody and transported to Bay County Jail. While in transit, deputies said Gomez led them to some garbage cans near the site of the shooting and allegedly showed them where he had stashed the firearm used to kill McArthur.
In a post-Miranda interview, Gomez allegedly confessed to killing his Lyft driver over comments he believed to be disrespectful after realizing that Gomez was drunk, Panama City ABC affiliate WMBB reported.
According to a probable cause affidavit, McArthur told Gomez he was underage and drunk before adding that Gomez’s mother was “sorry.” A furious Gomez allegedly admitted that he then pulled the pistol from his waistband and shot McArthur in the back of the head.
After the shooting, Gomez reportedly said he pulled McArthur from the still-moving car and attempted lifesaving measures but was unsuccessful. He said the car kept rolling until it was about 100 yards from McArthur’s body.
Prosecutors with the State Attorney’s Office already waived Gomez juvenile status and will prosecute him as an adult, per WMBB.
A fundraiser for the benefit McArthur’s wife, Lynn McArthur, can be found here.
