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At least two people were killed and six others injured in a mass shooting in downtown Orlando during a Halloween celebration early Friday (November 1) morning.
Shots were fired outside The Block, an area of seven separate clubs located at Central Boulevard and Orange Avenue, at around 1:07 a.m. ET, Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith confirmed during a press conference Friday morning via the New York Post. Hundreds of people, many of whom were dressed in costume for a cash-prize contest, were present at the scene.
A second shooting was reported minutes later at Washington Street and Orange Avenue, which is located one block away. The six wounded victims were rushed to local hospitals and reported to be in stable condition.
The shooting victims are reported to range in ages between 19 and 31. The shooter, who was taken down by police after opening fire on the crowd a second time, was identified as Jalen Dwayne Edgar, 17, who was previously arrested for grand theft in 2023.
Edgar, who is believed to have acted alone in the shooting, was armed with a handgun, however, went unseen by police when he arrived at the scene. Smith shared multiple videos of the downtown area during the moment of the shooting while addressing reporters, which included a clip of Edgar walking with a group, pulling out his gun and firing at an unsuspecting victim, which led to a frenzy.
A nearby officer located the gunman, swept his legs from underneath him and tackled him to the ground before others piled on.
“They’re always trained, and they’re always ready to act,” Smith said via the New York Post. “As soon as they heard the shots fired, none of the officers went the other way, they didn’t go with the crowd.”
“Most of them got a little cover between them, they started scanning to see what was going on and then they moved, they took action to keep everyone else safe and that’s what these officers do and I’m very proud of them,” he added.
Smith said an estimated range of 50,000 to 100,000 patrons attended the Halloween celebrations overnight.