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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sen. Rick Scott are demanding answers from the Orlando prosecutor, whose office failed to keep the 19-year-old gangster who killed a journalist and a 9-year-old girl off the streets despite his long criminal record sheet.
Keith Melvin Moses is in custody for the murders of journalist Dylan Lyons, nine-year-old T’Yonna Major, and 38-year-old Nathacha Augustin.
All three were killed last week in Pine Hills, near Orlando, after Moses, who is believed to be on drugs, went on a random killing spree.
Moses had been arrested 19 times in the past on suspicion of a variety of crimes including grand theft, burglary and attempted murder. Most of the crimes occurred when he was a minor, so the outcome of the arrests is unknown.
State Attorney Monique Worrell has advocated not locking him up or even prosecuting him in November 2021 after he was found in a car with a gun and marijuana. She says the crimes did not reach the level required for a conviction.
Keith Melvin Moses is in custody for the murders of journalist Dylan Lyons, nine-year-old T’Yonna Major and 38-year-old Nathacha Augustin.
State Attorney Monique Worrell has advocated not locking him up or even prosecuting him in November 2021 after he was found in a car with a gun and marijuana. She says the crimes did not reach the level required for a conviction.
“In hindsight it’s 20/20… my prosecutors don’t have a crystal ball, there’s no way for them to decide what the future level of dangerousness is going to be,” he said in an interview with WESH this week.
Now, both Governor DeSantis and Senator Scott are demanding Moses’ full records.
They say that if the “alleged failures” of Worrell’s office are confirmed, she should be removed from her position.
In a letter to his office, DeSantis’ attorney said: “Tragically, despite the clear threat that Mr. Moses posed to our community, he apparently made the decision not to press charges against him.
‘The failure of your office to hold this individual accountable for his actions, despite his extensive criminal history and gang affiliation, may have allowed this dangerous individual to remain on the streets.
‘Clearly, Mr. Moses should never have been in a position to commit those senseless crimes of last week.
“We must determine whether he was empowered by loopholes in our sentencing laws that need to be corrected, or to be blunt, his office’s failure to properly administer justice.”
Senator Scott, in a tweet, said: ‘Families in Central Florida deserve accountability. Which is why I’m demanding answers from State’s Attorney Worrell.
DeSantis’s office ordered Monique Worrell’s office to release the gunman’s full record
“If the flaws we suspect are confirmed, Governor DeSantis would do well to remove her.”
Worrell, in response, has criticized the two Republicans for “politicizing this tragedy.”
She goes on to cite the fact that Moses was mostly arrested as a minor.
Nathacha Augustin, 38, was Moses’ first victim
“There is nothing that I reviewed that was done inappropriately. When one wonders why someone was on the street, we must ask ourselves: do we want to sentence children to life imprisonment?
“That would be the only way to prevent someone who has committed any crime as a child from committing any crime again.”
It also says that he is prohibited from sharing the details of his juvenile arrests.
It’s unclear what kind of drug Moses was under the influence of when he carried out the murders, but the arresting sheriffs said he appeared to be high.
A stock photo taken shortly after shows him struggling to focus his eyes.
The murders began around 11 a.m. on Wednesday, February 22.
Moses was walking down the street when his cousin, whose name has not been identified, passed him with Augustin in the passenger seat.
The cousin told the police that Moses seemed ‘depressed’, so he offered to give him a ride. He got in the back seat, but then he started to ‘sweat’ and act ‘strange’.
Moses killed reporter Dylan Lyons, left, and nine-year-old T’Yonna Major. He had never met any of them and has yet to explain his motive.
Moses then drew a gun and shot Augustin, whom he had never seen before, in the chin and fled the scene.
Lyons, a reporter for Spectrum News 13, heard about the shooting and traveled to the scene to film a story.
At around 4 p.m., he and his cameraman Jesse Walden were getting ready when Moses showed up in their vehicle.
He shot Walden, who was in the back of the vehicle collecting his gear, then walked to the front of the car, where he shot Lyons, who was sitting in the passenger seat.
Moses then walked to T’Yonna Major’s house, entered through a sliding side door, and shot her and her mother. Nine-year-old T’Yonna died of her injuries.
He did not know any of his victims and refused to answer questions once in police custody.
Instead, detectives said he pretended to be asleep.
Moses missed a recent court hearing, citing mental health issues as the reason.
It is unclear if he will face the death penalty.
Worrell declined to confirm whether his office would be looking for him, saying it would be “inappropriate” to discuss the case.