A drive-by shooting in west Lakeland last week culminated with the arrests of three teens by Polk County Sheriff’s Office detectives. Two of the suspects, ages 17 and 16, are brothers and the third shooting suspect is a 14-year-old. The police investigation connected the Lakeland teens to a total of three drive-by shootings.
“While investigating this shooting, our detectives found that it was linked to two other drive-by shootings,” said Sheriff Grady Judd. “The same three suspects were out there putting innocent lives at risk, motivated by revenge—in essence because their feelings were hurt that the victims didn’t want to be around them anymore. And of course there was some social media drama thrown in there as well. They wanted to act like some big bad-boys, and now they’re charged with big bad-boy crimes.”
No one was injured in the shooting which occurred at about 1:26am Wednesday at a residence in the area of Chestnut Road and West Parker Street in an unincorporated area of Lakeland.
A total of nine bullet casings were recovered from the scene Thursday, with damages to a vehicle parked at the home and to the mailbox. The suspects were identified immediately as having ongoing issues with the victim and his friend.
The victim told detectives that he and his friend stopped associating with the suspects, and that didn’t sit well with them. The victim’s friend has been a victim of two drive-by shootings, one on August 9th and the other on September 20th. The PCSO has been investigating those two cases already.
The victim also informed investigators of recent threats he has received from the suspects via text messages and social media.
During the investigation, a firearm believed to have been involved in the shootings was seized from the home of one of the suspects. Another firearm being sought has not yet been located.
In each one of the Central Florida shootings, there were four people inside the residences, all of whom were uninjured.
PCSO detectives interviewed the three suspects and ultimately arrested them for all three drive-by shootings. Law enforcement released the following details on the suspects:
- Bryann Charles, 17, from Lakeland
- Aryann Charles, 16, from Lakeland (Bryann and Aryann are brothers)
- Delfino Perez-Garcia, 14, from Lakeland
Each suspect was charged with: Attempted 2nd Degree Murder, Shooting into an Occupied Dwelling, Shooting from a Vehicle, Shooting in a Residential Area, Improper Exhibition of a Firearm, Possession of a Firearm by a Person Under 18, and Culpable Negligence.
