International News
US TV reporter shot, killed while covering murder case
The incident in the US is the latest in gun-related violence in 2023.
A shooter opened fire on two television reporters who were covering a homicide near Orlando, Florida, on Wednesday, killing one and injuring the other before killing a nine-year-old girl and injuring her mother in a nearby house, according to US authorities.
In the Pine Hills neighbourhood of Orlando, US, not long after the attacks on the TV news crew and the mother and daughter, which occurred just a block apart, a suspect identified as Keith Melvin Moses, 19, was detained, according to Orange County Sheriff John Mina.
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Moses was detained as a suspect in both of those incidents. He was also formally charged with the shooting death of a lady in her 20s that occurred hours earlier, Mina added.
A reporter and a photographer for the Charter Communications-owned Spectrum News 13 cable television station in central Florida were identified by the sheriff as the two journalists.
The victims remained unidentified.
According to Mina, the suspect had a pistol when he was apprehended and has a significant criminal history, including arrests for burglaries, grand theft, aggravated battery, assault with a dangerous weapon, and firearms offenses.
Motive
He stated that no reason had been established for any of the shootings on Wednesday, but he added that Moses was thought to be acquainted with the first victim, who was shot while riding in a car with the alleged shooter and another individual.
The two newsmen’s car lacked the insignia and markings generally found on a news vehicle, the sheriff said, adding that he did not know whether they were targeted because they were journalists. When shot, they were inside or close to their car.
“As far as we know, he had no connection to the reporters and no connection to the mother or the nine-year-old, and we don’t know why he entered their home,” the sheriff said.
He said both the mother and the surviving journalist were in the hospital in critical condition.
“This is another tragic reminder that journalism is a dangerous business and that criminals and those that are the subject of reporting can become violent towards reporters who are doing their jobs,” said the US National Press Club.
The organisation urged all reporters in the field to take extra precautions and redouble efforts to work safely.
