As reported by Fox35 Orlando, Edgar waived his right to appear for unknown reasons, and his mother, speaking through tears only spoke to confirm the identity of her son. The judge informed the woman that Edgar would be held in secure detention pending his until his adjudicatory hearing. Albert Yonfa, an attorney not associated with the case told the outlet that Edgar is expected to be charged as an adult.
"The State Attorney has the right to directly file this individual as an adult even though he's 17 years old because of the heinousness of the crime he's being accused of," Yonfa said.
According to The New York Post, Edgar is charged with two counts of first-degree murder and six counts of attempted first-degree murder. The attack took place in downtown Orlando on Friday during Halloween festivities. Gunshots were reported at 1:07 a.m. as thousands of revelers ran for cover. Within minutes officers reported more gunshots approximately a block from the first scene.
Footage released by Orlando Police showed this suspect opening fire during the celebration before being tackled to the ground by a heroic officer, with three more pouncing on the downed gunman. Police would later confirm that Edgar has a previous criminal history with an arrest for Grand Theft in 2023.
Two of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene, the remaining six were transported to an area hospital in stable condition.
UPDATE: The Orlando Police Department has released video footage capturing the shooting incident in Downtown Orlando, along with the arrest of the suspect, Jaylen Dwayne Edgar.
— Orlando Police (@OrlandoPolice) November 1, 2024
See our previous post on Facebook for additional information: https://t.co/nWlMTFlNEz pic.twitter.com/37adF1Bxzb
In a statement released to social media, Orlando Police wrote,
"On 11/01/2024, at approximately 1:07 a.m., officers responded to reports of shots fired at Central Blvd. and Orange Ave. Within minutes, a second shooting was witnessed by officers south of Washington Street on Orange Avenue. A total of 8 victims were shot.
Tragically, 2 individuals have been pronounced deceased. The remaining 6 victims were transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center (ORMC) in stable condition. The ages of the victims range from 19 to 39-years-old.
Shortly after the initial shots were reported, a suspect was located by officers on OPD’s Downtown Detail and taken into custody at Washington St. and Orange Ave. That suspect has been identified as 17-year-old Jaylen Dwayne Edgar, who was previously
arrested for Grand Theft in 2023."
The department reported that approximately 100 officers were patrolling the downtown area when the shooting took place in anticipation of the large crowd. The Orlando PD also assessed the need for additional patrols through the weekend. As of this report, no motive has been identified by officials.
Comments