PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. (WFLA) — Two people are in custody and a warrant is out for another following a shooting in the parking lot of a Port Charlotte Walmart on Saturday.
According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, at 3 p.m. they received reports of a suspect firing several shots at a person in the parking lot of the Walmart located on Murdock Circle.
Major crimes detectives said they spoke with the victim at the scene, who told them that he and his girlfriend were shopping inside the store when the suspect and another person approached them.
The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office has identified the suspect as Anthony Mojica, 20.
CCSO said the victim told authorities that he and Mojica had a previous disagreement and that the 20-year-old has “had it out” for him ever since.
He also told detectives that as Mojica approached him, he flashed a firearm in his waistband and said, “You know what time it is,” before walking away.
At that point, the victim and his girlfriend decided to leave the store.
In the parking lot, detectives said the victim recounted how a blue Toyota 4Runner pulled up next to them, and Mojica, along with the 16-year-old accompanying him, jumped out.
The pair chased the victim before getting back into the vehicle, which was being driven by Mojica’s girlfriend, Amy Leiva, 20, according to detectives.
Authorities say Mojica then fired about six shots at the victim from the passenger side of the car before the vehicle sped off.
Detectives said the victim was unharmed, but a bystander was struck by debris from a wall where the bullets hit.
She did not sustain any physical injuries.
The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office reviewed the store’s security footage, which they said corroborated the victim’s account of the shooting.
Deputies located the blue 4Runner in the driveway of Leiva’s home, but upon arrival, Mojica and Leiva saw the marked vehicles and fled the residence.
The 16-year-old was at the home and taken in for questioning. Leiva was located at a nearby gas station shortly after and also taken in for questioning, deputies said.
According to detectives, the 16-year-old’s and Leiva’s accounts of the incident were inconsistent with the events shown on surveillance video.
The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office arrested the pair for their alleged involvement in the incident and charged Leiva with accessory after the fact, a second-degree felony.
CCSO also charged the 16-year-old with simple assault, a misdemeanor.
A warrant has been issued for Anthony Mojica on charges of aggravated assault, aggravated battery, shooting into a building, and discharging a firearm within 1,000 feet of a person.
Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to contact the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office at 941-639-2101.
