A Young Guns defendant was recently convicted of murder in a Central Florida gunfight.
After a full week trial, a Volusia County jury found Young Guns defendant McKenzy Nazien guilty as charged of First-Degree Murder (Firearm) and Attempted First-Degree Murder (Firearm).
On the evening of September 1, 2022, Nazien, who was only 19 years old at the time, was arguing with the victim outside of a Port Orange apartment complex. The argument caused two groups of armed men to gather in the parking lot.
The witness who was standing next to the 22-year-old victim told detectives that Nazien shot him multiple times in the back, which led several of the other men to also shoot. The defendant then chased and fired at the witness as he was running away from the apartment complex.
The victim was shot four times and died at the scene. 48 bullet casings and multiple videos were gathered by detectives after the gunfight.
On November 15, 2022, Hendry County Sheriff’s Office deputies attempted to pull over a vehicle that Nazien was in. When the vehicle stopped, the defendant and the two other men he was with ran into a nearby neighborhood. Nazien was quickly found by deputies. He was arrested and booked into the Hendry County Jail for Resisting Without Violence.
The defendant was eventually interviewed by the Port Orange Police Department. He lied throughout the interview about his involvement in the gunfight. Nazien was eventually extradited to the Volusia County Jail to face the murder charge.
“The defendant shot our victim multiple times and at least forty rounds were expended during this shooting episode,” State Attorney R.J. Larizza said about the case. “It is nothing short of miraculous that more folks weren’t shot or killed. Another example of the disturbing trend of a teenager engaging in homicidal activity.”
The Central Florida case was investigated by the Port Orange Police Department with assistance from the Daytona Beach Police Department, Volusia Sheriff’s Office and Hendry County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant State Attorney Andrew Urbanak successfully tried the case for the state. The Honorable Kathleen McNeilly presided over the case and will pronounce sentence at a later date.
