FORT MYERS, Fla. — A man was shot and killed trying to get into an apartment Thursday night in Fort Myers.
Fort Myers Police said the man trying to get in had a gun but also lived there with an apartment number similar to the one he tried to get into.
Residents tell Fox 4 community corespondent Stephen Pimpo that they wonder if this was all just a misunderstanding:
Andre Pierre says he was about to go to sleep that night when he heard the gunfire.
“I was laying down and then I heard a ‘bang’ sound but I was so tired I thought it was a firework or something,” he said.
I turns out it was a gunshot from inside his apartment complex, the Carlton of Fort Myers, though not his building.
“It’s so, so crazy knowing that it happened so close to me,” Pierre said. “As soon as I saw the story, I was like ‘Dang, that’s my apartment.’”
Fort Myers Police said they were called to the scene at 6170 Mahaffey Road at around 11:45 p.m. Thursday. They say a man with a gun was trying to get inside an apartment and the person who lived there shot them. FMPD said officers and EMS provided life saving measures but the man died at the scene.
“It bummed me out a little bit because like, this is a nice neighborhood,” said resident Mi’Kel Hendrix. “I kind of just escaped, got out of something like that so it kind of just made me feel unsafe a little bit, but nothing too crazy.”
But Friday, Fort Myers Police said the man not only lived at the Carlton but had an apartment number very close to the one he was trying to get into. FMPD said the two
“It could’ve happened to anyone,” Pierre said. “Could have been a simple mistake of identification. Things happen but you have the right to protect yourself, so I understand.”
FMPD said everyone involved is cooperating with the investigation and no arrests have been made.
UPDATE 4:52 p.m.:
Fort Myers Police say through the investigation, they discovered the man shot and killed lives on the property. They also say he has a similar apartment number as the one he was trying to gain access to, according to police.
UPDATE 1:00 p.m.:
Police tell Fox 4 the break-in was random and the two people involved did not know each other.
The investigation is still active and no one is in custody.
ORIGINAL STORY:
One person is dead after a shooting Thursday night, according to the Fort Myers Police Department.
The call came in around 11:45 p.m. to Mahaffey Road, according to an officer.
Police say the caller claimed they had fired one shot at an intruder who was armed and trying to enter the home.
Officers and EMS provided life-saving measures but the alleged intruder was pronounced dead on the scene.
No one is in custody at this time, and everyone has cooperated with police, according to the department.
Fox 4 has reached out to The Carlton of Fort Myers for comment, which is Mahaffey Road circles.
