A 21-year-old man armed with a rifle shot two people at a Central Florida home, killing one before he fled.
An Osceola County jury found 21-year-old Safari Rodriguez guilty of First Degree Murder with Special Findings, Aggravated Battery with Special Findings, Attempted First Degree Murder with Special Findings and Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon after he shot two people at a local home in 2022, killing one of them.
On June 3, 2022, Rodriguez armed himself with a rifle and shot and killed Alejandro Guzman as he sat in a vehicle in the driveway.
A woman inside the house came outside to confront Rodriguez and convince him to drop the weapon. Instead, Rodriguez opened fire and shot her in the head. The second victim ran back inside the home and hid in a bathroom with additional occupants of the house.
A man outside the home witnessed Rodriguez shoot the second victim. Rodriguez then turned toward him and fired several shots at the man as he ran away. Rodriguez entered the home and unsuccessfully tried to break into the bathroom. As Rodriguez left the home, he pointed his rifle at a third man who was outside the house and saw him.
Just over three weeks after the shooting, Osceola County Sheriff’s Office detectives tracked Rodriguez down and arrested him in Bay County, where he fled with family members.
During the trial, the three victims and witnesses who hid in the bathroom testified. Prosecutors also used surveillance video that captured Rodriguez’s movements before and after the shootings.
After a five-day trial, a jury found Rodriguez guilty of First Degree Murder with Special Findings, Aggravated Battery with Special Findings, Attempted First Degree Murder with Special Findings and Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon.
The judge has not set a sentencing date yet, but Rodriguez is eligible for the firearm minimum mandatory sentence of 25 years to life.
