Kidnapping

TAVARES, Fla.—Two separate incidents at an embattled condominium complex kept Tavares Police Department busy in the early hours of the new year Monday.

In the first incident, TPD responded to Rosewood Condominiums around 2:30 a.m. Monday in reference to a kidnapping, and when they arrived, they found four males walking northbound on West Rosewood Lane. The males were identified as Keshaun Terrell Pearce, 21, Omar Torray Alexander-Graham, 17, and Korrell D’Mon Walker, 17. The fourth male was visibly upset and crying and looked, “as if he was begging for help,” the arresting officer noted in a report. He was separated from the group for questioning and identified as the victim.

Pearce, who is known to carry firearms, admitted he was armed, and an officer removed a loaded 9mm Taurus handgun from the pocket of his hoodie. He told TPD he was walking with the group to an unidentified juvenile female’s residence due to the victim allegedly having a sexual relationship with the girl. He said he might have “roughed him up,” prior to the walk, He later told police he grabbed the victim by the collar, but never hit him and said the victim got into an altercation earlier in Mount Dora. Alexander-Graham, who was armed with a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson, was detained and placed into the back of a patrol vehicle and Walker was detained and put into the back of another patrol vehicle; he told police he witnessed a physical altercation between Pearce and the victim and said the gun he was carrying was dropped by the victim as they walked to the juvenile female’s home.

Walker saw the group walking and joined them, he told police, and said he only knew the victim was having an alleged relationship with the female and denied seeing anything else. He told police he was looking at his phone the whole time. Walker was searched and officers found a small amount of marijuana in his pocket and a phone he dropped at the scene.

The victim, who Inside Lake is not identifying, told officers he was at a party in Mount Dora with Pearce, and they left and went to a residence on West Rosewood Lane. While there, the victim said he got into an argument with Pearce about the alleged relationship with the juvenile female and Pearce got angry and punched the victim in the face. He said Pearce grabbed him and told him they were going to talk to the girl’s mother. The victim told police he complied because he was in fear and the group, including Alexander-Graham, Walker and an unidentified person, began walking toward the juvenile female’s home, according to the report.

The victim told police as they walked through Rosewood Condominiums, Walker was holding his arm, and the unidentified person took his phone. He said he tried to leave several times and yelled for help, but Alexander-Graham told him to be quiet, or else he would be shot, using multiple references for being shot and Pearce told him to keep moving and put a gun to his back. They arrived at the female’s home, and her mother was not there, he told police.

They left and were soon approached by TPD.

Pearce, Alexander-Graham and Walker were all arrested for kidnapping and are each facing additional charges. Pearce was also arrested for battery, inflicting bodily harm or terrorizing a victim, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm in commission of a felony; Walker is also charged with battery and possession of marijuana and Alexander-Graham is facing two additional charges involving the gun—carrying a concealed firearm and possession of a firearm in commission of a felony.

Pearce is being held in the Lake County Jail on $68,000. Alexander-Graham and Walker were turned over to the Department of Juvenile Justice.

Less than two hours later, TPD responded to a neighborhood near Rosewood Condominiums in reference to a man being “jumped.” He told police he was hanging out with two women in Mount Dora, earlier in the evening and was planning on going to a condo in Rosewood with one of them. The other woman got mad and took off walking. The victim and the other woman tried to find her but were unsuccessful and went to the condo in Tavares. After they arrived the victim and the woman who took off on foot got into an argument on the phone and the victim called her a name. She responded to the name calling by saying, “Oh, you (expletive) now, you (expletive) now,” according to the report.

Approximately 30 to 40 minutes later, two men showed up at the condo, kicked the door in and began beating the victim, so he ran out the back door, jumped several fences and finally ended up at a home in a nearby neighborhood. Tavares Fire Department and Lake EMS responded to tend to his wounds and although the victim said he did believe a weapon was involved, Lake EMS told police his injuries were consistent with a “bladed weapon,” due to the cleanliness and severity of the wounds. He was transported by ground to Orlando Regional Medical Center.

“we’re investigating if the two incidents are related, but at this time we don’t believe they are,” TPD Public Information Officer Courtney Sullivan said.