He was in the drive-thru at a Florida McDonald’s. The order got ‘delayed,’ police say
An impatient customer wreaked havoc at a McDonald’s drive-thru in Central Florida early Sunday morning.
At approximately 3 a.m., officers were dispatched to the fast-food joint on Frontage Road after receiving calls about two men fighting there, according to a news release from the Lakeland Police.
While officers were en route, dispatchers received updates from the reportee that “shots had been fired.”
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Upon arrival, cops saw a minivan in the roadway directly in front of the restaurant. Inside was a 28-year-old woman, “who had been shot multiple times,” and a 34-year-old man rendering aid. (The names of the victims are being withheld in accordance with Marsy’s Law.)
The woman was transported to a local hospital in stable condition with serious injuries; the male declined medical treatment at the scene for “a minor injury.” The suspect, later identified as Calvin Sousa, had already fled the location in a white vehicle, authorities say.
Officers were told that prior to the alleged incident, the victims were in line waiting for their order, which had been “delayed due to an error.”
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The suspect, who was in his car behind the victims, became “upset and began honking the horn and yelling.”
That’s when both the male victim and Sousa got out of their respective vehicles and engaged in a physical altercation. After the brief tussle, both returned to their cars and began to exit.
As the minivan was pulling out of the parking lot, the suspect reportedly pulled up to the passenger’s side and fired “multiple shots” into the vehicle.
Through witness statements and evidence gathered, officers were able to identify the suspect’s vehicle, and track him to a home in Highland City, about eight miles south.
The 28-year-old initially refused officers’ commands, barricading himself inside the house, but eventually exited before being taken into custody.
Sousa was charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder, shooting into an occupied vehicle, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and improper exhibit of a firearm.
This story was originally published April 3, 2023 at 4:52 PM.
