Updated: Kentucky stepbrothers shot multiple times outside Florida resort. One dies
Two Kentucky boys were shot and one died Tuesday morning near a Panama City Beach resort in Florida, according to the city’s police department.
The shooting happened beachside around 1:30 a.m. at the Shores of Panama resort, police said. The two boys are stepbrothers, police said. They are between the ages of 12 and 16, according to multiple media reports.
From the Louisville area, they were visiting the beach on vacation, police said.
The boys were on the beach when they encountered Lawrence Cox, 37, who allegedly shot them, police said. Cox was seen fleeing the scene and was detained, police said.
One was found dead beachside with gunshot wounds in his upper body, police said. The other boy was found with gunshot wounds “to his extremities,” police said. He was taken to Ascension Sacred Heart Bay in Panama City, where he was treated and released.
“Officers are still investigating the events of what occurred between the three prior to the shooting,” police said in a statement posted to social media.
Cox is a resident of Panama City Beach, but he coincidentally is also from the Louisville area, police said. He was charged with murder and attempted murder, according to police. He was taken to the Panama City Beach Police Department after he was detained, where he made “incriminating statements about his involvement in the shooting,” police said.
Cox was taken to a local jail to await his first court appearance.
The resort where the shooting occurred is on the Gulf of Mexico near several other major vacation destinations.
“The police department would like to emphasize this incident, while occurring during the Spring Break vacation season, is in no way Spring Break related,” police said in a statement.
This story was originally published March 23, 2021 at 8:56 AM.