EUSTIS, Florida—A 14-year-old has now been arrested for his involvement in one of a series of gang-related shootings in recent months.
Kristine Moriel Morris, of Eustis, was picked up Monday on charges related to a drive-by shooting on Feb. 7 in the 1200 block of East Hazzard Avenue. Artavious “Kutt” Williams, 16, and Robert “Swag” Sharp, 16, were arrested last month and more arrests may be forthcoming.
Eustis Police responded to the scene in February and found a bullet hit a home and a tree, along with four shell casings in the roadway, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Police spoke to witnesses and found that two cars pulled up to children playing basketball near the shooting and asked where someone was by their nickname, “Cherry Lake.” “Cherry Lake” is a known gang member, affiliated with the “510 Gang.” Inside Lake is not naming “Cherry Lake” by his real name, because he has not been charged with a crime. The males then got back into one of the vehicles and another witness described the same vehicle driving by her apartment and firing shots.
The “4wayy” gang has been investigated for several shootings dating back to November 2020, according to Eustis Police Chief Craig Capri. Police believe there is a rivalry between “510 Gang” that is comprised of mostly juveniles who live in or grew up in Eustis, and “4wayy” that is comprised of mostly juveniles who live in or grew up in Mount Dora. Police are still investigating the motive behind the rivalry.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Mount Dora Police Department and Tavares Police Department have all been working with EPD, Capri told Inside Lake. Capri’s own officers have been working hard to talk to witnesses and gather evidence to make arrests.
“I am very proud of the men and women of Eustis Police Department and the work they have put in on these cases,” Capri said last month.
This rivalry began more than a year ago and there have been 15 to 20 shootings reported to law enforcement involving these two gangs in a little over a year, and police believe there are more that have been unreported, Capri said. Most were drive-by shootings where no one was injured. The home on Hazzard Avenue has been shot at, at least four times in the last few months.
Though it is believed to have begun earlier in November 2020, on Nov. 27, 2020, a woman, who was not the target, was hit by one of three shots fired in downtown Eustis following the city’s annual “Light Up Eustis” festivities. This reporter was the only media on scene following that incident. Brycen Jacobe Williams, then 17, was arrested less than two months later for the shooting.
In this most recent shooting on Feb. 7, a tipster showed police a Snapchat story posted by Williams that showed EPD cars on the scene with the caption, “Ain’t Nomoee Who Dat, We Shoot Dat.”
Gang members from both sides have utilized social media to get “street credit,” and videos and photos were discovered showing the car, a white Dodge Dart, suspected in the Feb. 7 shooting near the shooting location. The photos and videos were recorded just six minutes before the shots were fired.
Editor’s note: Although Brycen Williams, who was arrested for the Light Up Eustis shooting, and Artavious Williams are both said to be gang members and have the same last name, they are not related according to EPD.
Police also believe the shooting at Sunset Island Park on Jan. 22 involves some “4wayy” members, but the shooting was random, Capri told Inside Lake. Thomas Saliba, 17, was shot in the face during a 3-year-old’s birthday party, but was not targeted, Capri said. It is believed that the individuals involved in that shooting just randomly decided to shoot up a park, he said. One person has been arrested in that case.
