Zellwood fatal shooting victim had warrant out for arrest, records show

Deputies are searching for a gunman after a 64-year-old man was shot to death in Zellwood Monday evening, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.

The shooting happened shortly after 5 p.m. along the 6000 block of Willow Street.

The victim was identified as Eduardo Gutierrez-Valdez. He was pronounced dead at the scene, deputies said.

“We call the cops a lot when we hear a gunshot, but usually they don't find anything, but this time the gunshot took someone's life. Maybe they'll take it seriously next time," neighbor Melinda Motherway said.

Channel 9 reporter Jeff Deal learned that the shooting victim was running from the law.

But neighbors described Gutierrez-Valdez, who they called “Eddie,” as a nice guy.

“He was always calm, loving,” an unnamed neighbor said. “He was just real good people. Man, he wasn't no bad person. As far as (expletive) going down in my hood, that's normal. That's like a (expletive) regular day to me.”

ZELLWOOD, Fla. — TRENDING NOW:

There was a warrant out for Gutierrez-Valdez's arrest after he skipped a court hearing and then disappeared about two years ago, Deal said.

Authorities said state troopers arrested Gutierrez-Valdez after finding a few ounces of cocaine in his car during a traffic stop in 2016. He was expected to take a plea in the case in 2017, but never showed up in court.

Neighbor said Gutierrez-Valdez had a car with out-of-state plates and was known to leave town for weeks at a time.

“He'd leave, and it'd be probably about three or four weeks before we’d see Eddie come back again,” another unnamed neighbor said.

Investigators haven't said whether the killing was drug related. A description of the gunman has not been released.

The investigation is ongoing.

The 64-year-old man found shot to death in the Zellwood area has been identified as Eduardo Gutierrez Valdez. Today we saw @OrangeCoSheriff deputies back working hard in the neighborhood trying to figure out who was behind the killing. We’re live on Eyewitness News at noon #WFTV pic.twitter.com/qzVEwY0NDd
— Jeff Deal (@JDealWFTV) May 28, 2019