‘They shot up the wrong house’: 3 injured in drive-by shootings at Florida homes

POLK COUNTY, Fla. — Three people were injured Monday in a pair of drive-by shootings in two unincorporated areas of a Central Florida county, authorities said.

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During a news conference Wednesday, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said the shootings occurred 17 minutes apart in areas near Lake Wales.

Judd said that a 19-year-old woman and two youths, 14 and 12 years old, were injured during the overnight shooting, WFLA-TV reported.

Judd said the first shooting occurred at about 2:52 a.m. EST in the Highland Park Manor subdivision, according to the television station.

The sheriff told reporters that deputies found 59 spent casings from two different weapons. Thirty of them struck the home near a bedroom window. Judd added that five people were inside the residence when the shooting occurred, WFLA reported.

There, deputies found 59 spent bullet casings from two different firearms sprawled out in front of a home. Of the 59 casings, 30 bullets struck the home near a bedroom window. Five people were inside the home at the time of the shooting.

The 19-year-old, who was asleep in a bedroom, was shot. Judd told reporters that the woman was shot in the shoulder and was taken to an area hospital, where she was treated for injuries that were not considered to be life-threatening.

The second shooting occurred at around 3:09 a.m. EST in the Lake Pierce Ranchettes subdivision, Judd told reporters.

Judd said that detectives believed three people with weapons drove into the neighborhood, exited a vehicle and shot at the home, WFLA reported. Deputies found 37 ammunition casings and said 27 struck the house, with many of the bullets hitting the bedrooms, according to the television station.

Judd said a 14-year-old girl was struck in the thigh and buttocks. A 12-year-old was shot in the arm, the sheriff said.

“You notice that the bullet wounds are head-high in the headboard?” Judd said. “Well, for whatever reason these kids were sleeping sideways in the bed. It’s a God thing.”

Both children were taken to an area hospital for their injuries and were later released, according to WFLA.

Judd added that the residents in the second home had just moved into the neighborhood.

“They shot up the wrong house,” Judd told reporters. “They hit these poor innocent people that just moved in.

“We’ve got to hold the people accountable that tried to shoot up this house.”

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