An 11-year-old Florida boy is now in custody, having been accused of a truly heinous crime: fatally shooting the woman who has taken care of him for almost his entire life.
Just before 8 a.m. on Friday, police responded to a call about a shooting at a residence in Ocoee, Florida, about 10 miles northwest of Orlando. Neighbors had heard screaming, and when police arrived at the home on Idaho Court, they found 55-year-old Sandra Pape King shot and clinging to life.
‘He had a little tantrum here and there. I figure that was normal for a kid his age.’
A report from WESH indicated neighbors had found her in the front yard of the home, and TV footage showed her purse, which was still laying on the ground. However, a statement from the Ocoee Police Department claimed she had “had been shot inside the home.”
In any case, first responders raced King to Advent Health Apopka, where she later died from her injuries. It is unclear how many times she had been shot.
Officers almost immediately honed in on a suspect: the 11-year-old boy who lived with King. The boy appeared in court on Saturday.
Members of the boy’s family also attended the hearing, and at least one of them seemed sympathetic to the boy’s circumstances. A woman, who described herself as King’s daughter and the boy’s cousin, asked the court to allow her and other relatives to visit the boy at the juvenile detention facility where he is currently being housed.
“He doesn’t understand what’s going on. I don’t even think he knows he killed her,” she told the court. She also explained that King had been the boy’s “guardian since he was 6 weeks old.”
The court granted her request. The boy will remain in custody until his next hearing, though the date of that hearing is unknown.
Meanwhile, those who know King from the neighborhood are still reeling with shock over her violent death. One local resident admitted the boy is “a little thin” and may have gotten “caught up with his aunt,” but still couldn’t believe the boy is believed to have killed her.
Another neighbor, Jackson Genao, is likewise bewildered. “He seemed like any other child, you know. You see, he had a little tantrum here and there. I figure that was normal for a kid his age, you know. I have two daughters his age, so I didn’t think nothing of it,” he said.
Neighbor Gerald Ingram called the entire situation “heartbreaking.”
The boy’s attorney declined to comment. Ocoee police claim the investigation into the case remains “active and ongoing.”