The Latest: Sherriff identifies Orlando shooter. No ties to terrorism


ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The Latest on the multiple shooting in an industrial park in Orlando (all times local):

2:30 p.m.

A Florida sheriff has identified a man suspected of fatally shooting five former co-workers and then killing himself.

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings says 45-year-old John Robert Neumann Jr. was responsible for the deaths Monday morning at Fiamma, an Orlando-area RV awning business.

Demings says Neumann was armed with a handgun and a large hunting knife and killed himself just before deputies arrived.

Neumann was discharged from the U.S. Army in 1999. Demings says it appears Neumann was a disgruntled former employee acting alone. Deputies say eight witnesses survived the attack. One survivor told deputies Neumann spoke to her and told her to leave.

Authorities have found no connection to terrorism.

1:30 p.m.

The workplace shooting of five people by a gunman who then killed himself in Orlando on Monday happened a week before the one-year mark of the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

The massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando on June 2016 killed 49 people and left dozens more injured. Several events commemorating the massacre at the gay club are scheduled for next Monday.

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson is among those noting the timing.

The Florida Democrat says the city “is still healing from the Pulse massacre” and “has seen too much violence.” His statement calls for doing “more to address mental health issues in this country.”

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1:10 p.m.

Sheriff’s officials are notifying the families of the victims killed in a workplace shooting at a Florida awning company.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said in a tweet on Monday that they’ll hold a briefing on the shooting at 2 p.m., delaying the news conference by an hour.

Sheriff Jerry Demings said five people were killed by a 45-year-old former employee at the Fiamma, Inc. awning maker industrial park near Orlando. The worker, whose name hasn’t been released, was fired in April.

Officials say the gunman fatally shot himself after killing 4 men and 1 woman.

12 noon

Authorities say officers arrived at the scene of a workplace shooting just two minutes after a witness called 911 in Orlando.

By then, four people were already dead or dying. The gunman fatally shot himself, and another victim was rushed to a hospital, mortally wounded.

Special Agent in Charge Danny Banks of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement said “seven others’ lives were saved due to the quick actions of the officers who arrived on the scene today.”

Banks and Orlando Mayor Teresa Jacobs both said the crime shows that people should speak up if they learn of anything that could lead to violence, so that authorities might have a chance to prevent it.

Banks said they “will continue to champion the cause of ‘see something, say something.’”

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11:45 a.m.

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings says the five people who died after a workplace shooting at a business near Orlando were shot in several locations in the building.

The shooting happened about 8 a.m. Monday. Demings says the people who came to work at the awing manufacturing company “were going about their business” when the shooter started firing.

He says about 12 people were at the company and seven people survived. He says no survivors were shot or hurt.

The gunman, described as a 45-year-old disgruntled former worker, also shot and killed himself.

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11:20 a.m.

The Orange County sheriff’s office says it hopes to identify the gunman in a workplace shooting near Orlando at its next briefing this afternoon.

The briefing is planned for 1 p.m. Monday.

In a news conference, Sheriff Jerry Demings called the shooting that left four men and one woman dead early Monday a “tragic incident.”

“It’s a sad day for us once again in Orange County,” he said. “Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of the victims.”

Demings says the shooter, described as a 45-year-old disgruntled former worker at the awnings manufacturing plant, also shot and killed himself.

Seven people survived.

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11:05 a.m.

Authorities say five people have been killed in a workplace shooting near Orlando.

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said during a briefing Monday that the gunman was a disgruntled former employee who was fired in April. Demings says the gunman shot and killed himself. The sheriff says the shooting is not believed to have any link to terrorism.

The shooting happened inside a business that manufactures awnings.

The sheriff says the shooter, who has not yet been identified, had been involved in a previous workplace violence incident and had been accused of battering another employee inside the business. He was not charged in that case.

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11 a.m.

A woman who was in the awnings manufacturers business that is the site of a multiple shooting ran out of the building, saying the gunman told her to leave.

Yamaris Gomez, who is the owner of a tile store across the street, said that the woman ran out of the Fiamma, Inc. facility and across the street to call law enforcement.

Gomez says the woman told her that the gunman had told her to leave the facility.

Gomez says the woman ran across the street, calling law enforcement on her phone.

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10:45 a.m.

Gov. Rick Scott has issued a statement after a shooting with multiple victims asking “all Floridians to pray for the families impacted by this senseless act of violence.”

In his statement Monday, Scott says the Orlando community has been challenged like never before. And he says he and his wife, Ann, are praying for the families who lost loved ones in the shooting reported about 8 a.m. Monday.

Scott’s comments about the Orlando area’s challenges were in reference to the shooting on June 12, 2016, at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. The gay nightclub was the site of the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

Monday’s shooting at the company that makes awnings for recreational vehicles happened in Orange County near Orlando.

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10:30 a.m.

The focus of the police investigation into a fatal shooting with multiple victims is a business that makes awnings for recreational vehicles.

Orange County Sheriff’s deputies were zeroing in Monday morning on the Fiamma Inc. business in an industrial park in Orlando, Florida.

The company says on its website that it is one of the largest manufacturers of awnings for camper vans, motor coaches and sports utility vehicles.

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings is expected to give a briefing. Officials said there were multiple fatalities and that situation is contained.

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10:15 a.m.

Witness accounts are beginning to emerge from a multiple shooting inside a business in an industrial park in the Orlando area.

The Associated Press talked with Shelley Adams, whose sister, Sheila McIntrye, works for the company and was in the bathroom when shots rang out.

McIntyre is safe with police now but she called her sister during the shooting, and she was very upset.

She kept repeating “My boss is dead. My boss is dead.”

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings is expected to give a briefing. Officials said there were multiple fatalities and that situation is contained.

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10:10 a.m.

The FBI is joining the investigation into a multiple shooting in an industrial park in the Orlando area.

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings was expected to give a briefing Monday about what happened at the warehouse in an industrial area of east Orlando.

The sheriff’s office says there are multiple fatalities. Officials haven’t said how many, but they do say that the situation is contained.

Several roads in Orlando were closed as deputies responded to the shooting.

No further details were immediately available.

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9:25 a.m.

Law enforcement authorities in Florida say there are “multiple fatalities” following a shooting in an industrial area near Orlando.

On its officials twitter account Monday morning, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said the “situation” has been contained. Officials say they’ll provide an update as soon as the “info is accurate.”

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings is expected to make a statement soon.

Several roads in Orlando were closed as deputies responded to the shooting.

No further details were immediately available.

 

Jim Williams is the Washington Bureau Chief, Digital Director as well as the Director of Special Projects for Genesis Communications. He is starting his third year as part of the team. This is Williams 40th year in the media business, and in that time he has served in a number of capacities. He is a seven time Emmy Award winning television producer, director, writer and executive. He has developed four regional sports networks, directed over 2,000 live sporting events including basketball, football, baseball hockey, soccer and even polo to name a few sports. Major events include three Olympic Games, two World Cups, two World Series, six NBA Playoffs, four Stanley Cup Playoffs, four NCAA Men’s National Basketball Championship Tournaments (March Madness), two Super Bowl and over a dozen college bowl games. On the entertainment side Williams was involved s and directed over 500 concerts for Showtime, Pay Per View and MTV Networks.