Florida Shooter Kills 4, Including a Mom and Her 3-Month-Old Baby She's Cradling

By Jess Smith First Posted: Sep 06, 2021 01:10 AM EDT

Before engaging in a gunfight with the Florida law enforcement, a man wearing full-body armor fatally shot four individuals, including a mother and her three-month-old baby she's cradling, a Florida sheriff said Sunday.

The Florida shooter, who was identified as a former Marine, exchanged fire with the police before he ended up wounded and surrendering to law enforcement.

Florida Shooter's Background

According to NPR, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said in a press conference that 33-year-old Bryan Riley was arrested Sunday morning after shooting in two different homes along North Socrum Loop Road.

Despite being on a hospital gurney, Riley was still so aggressive that he even tried to wrestle an officer to get his gun. Judd said the former marine who served as a sharpshooter in both Iraq and Afghanistan was apparently suffering from mental health issues after he has targeted his victims at random.

Judd noted that Riley's girlfriend and family said he was an honorably discharged Marine who had PTSD and was slowly unraveling for weeks.

The suspect repeatedly told her girlfriend that he could communicate directly with God. Judd said the Florida shooter told them that his victims "begged for their lives and I killed them anyway."

Victims of Florida Shooting

Preliminary investigation's evidence showed that the 40-year-old Justice Gleason just happened to be an unlucky stranger. He was out mowing his lawn Saturday night when the former Marine drove by his home in Lakeland and said that God instructed him to stop because Gleason's daughter Amber was going to commit suicide.

Aside from the death of four individuals, Riley shot an 11-year-old girl seven times, but authorities reportedly expect her to survive after she received treatment at Tampa General.

Authorities responded to the scene after receiving calls but never found the Florida shooter. However, nine hours later, at around 4:30 a.m, Judd said Riley returned to his home and created a path that led officers "into an ambush."

After hearing popping noises, a lieutenant far in the distance immediately put the agency on active shooter mode and brought all state and local law enforcement in the area to the scene.

Authorities arrived at the home and found an unarmed Riley outside, dressed in camouflage. However, Riley immediately ran inside, and officers heard a round of gunfire and heard a woman scream and a baby whimper.

Officers tried to enter the front door of the house, but Riley barricaded it. When the officers attempted to enter at the back of the house, they were surprised by Riley, who already wore his full body armor, including head and knee coverings and a bulletproof vest, ABC News reported.

After authorities outmanned him during the exchange of fires, Judd said it forced Riley to retreat back into the home.

Despite the possible threat, a sergeant rushed inside and grabbed the 11-year-old girl, who had been shot at least seven times. Before she was rushed into surgery, the girl told the deputies that three people inside the home were already dead, Bay News 9 reported.

Deputies have sent robots into the home to check for explosives and other traps. When it was clear, they found the bodies of the victims, Gleason; the 33-year-old mother; the baby; and the baby's 62-year-old grandmother, who was in a separate home nearby.

Authorities released only Gleason's name and did not say how he was related to the other victims.

This article is owned by Latin Post

Written by: Jess Smith

WATCH: Florida Gunman Kills 4 people, Including Mom Still Holding Baby - From WGN News