Harold Whitt Harper, Ocala, Florida man shot and killed by random stranger while gardening in his front yard. Isaac Ezekiel Toye had been observed wandering neighborhood with drawn pistol moments before.
A 64-year-old Florida man gardening in his front yard was fatally shot by a random stranger walking through the neighborhood, Ocala authorities said.
Harold Whitt Harper was pronounced dead in front of his residence following the shooting shortly after 3:30 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 7. When the crime occurred, Ocala police officers were already en route to the neighborhood after a neighbor calling 911 to report a suspicious person.
Suspect was seen moments earlier wandering neighborhood with pistol
Isaac Ezekiel Toye, 29, was quickly identified and arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated assault and one count of homicide.
‘This horrific event appears to be a random act of violence,’ the Ocala Police Department stated in a Facebook release. ‘There is no indication that this was a targeted attack or that there are additional suspects.’
Moments before the shooting occurred, a resident along South East 3rd st called 911 to report he was driving away from his house when a Black man wearing all black approached his vehicle, attempted to get him to stop driving and was in possession of a pistol.
Shortly after that, a second 911 call was made reporting the shooting of Harper about a block away. An officer spotted a man nearby matching the suspect’s description and was found with a gun.
Further casualties preempted as locals are left dumbfounded
Police stated there was a potential for more harm had the initial call about the ‘suspicious’ man had not been placed, WESH reported.
Just moments before the fatal shooting, the victim’s wife had been with her husband in the front yard before momentarily returning inside.
News of Whitt Harper’s shooting death unnerved locals with one FB stating, ‘This is hard to digest. Your front yard you would think is a safe place- definitely where he lived.’
Police to date provided no known motive for the shooting.
