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'This was demonic': Sheriff details killing of Uber Eats driver

Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco detailed what he called a "demonic" and "horrific" murder of a delivery driver in Florida last week.
'This was demonic': Sheriff details killing of Uber Eats driver
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Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco detailed what he called a "demonic" and "horrific" murder of a delivery driver in Holiday, Florida, last week.

Nocco said the case began on April 19 when the victim, Randall Cooke, was set to start making deliveries for Uber Eats. Cooke dropped his wife off that day before starting his deliveries.

According to Nocco, Cooke and his wife were texting back and forth until about 7 p.m., when he stopped responding. Cooke's wife reached out to law enforcement to report him missing and the investigation started.

"She did everything she could, and evil just came," Nocco said. 

Uber provided the Pasco County Sheriff's Department with the last known coordinates for Cooke. That information took deputies to a road in Holiday.

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Detectives went to the house and looked around but didn't find anything suspicious or any evidence of things going on, and no one answered the door.

Deputies returned to the home on April 21, and a roommate of Oscar Solis, 30, answered the door. The roommate gave deputies a video of the victim walking to the door to deliver food at 6:55 p.m. on April 19, at which point the video cuts out.

The Pasco County Sheriff's Office said it appeared that Solis pulled Cooke into the home and attempted to rob him. According to Nocco, Solis was then seen on video on April 20 taking trash bags out of the house. Detectives got permission to search the trash bags and found body parts inside.

They also found a substantial amount of evidence at the scene; authorities didn't elaborate and said the scene is still being processed.

"This was a horrific crime of passion," Nocco said. "This was demonic. What he did was demonic."

Nocco described the victim as "a guy like everybody else trying to make a living for his family." 

"This person killed him for no reason," Nocco added.

Nocco said Solis was affiliated with MS-13 gang in Indiana, where he was also on parole. The Pasco County Sheriff's Office said Solis had been released from an Indiana prison in January following a four-year sentence for assault and burglary.

Solis is charged with felony murder, failing to register as a convicted felon and violation of parole.  

This article was written by Scripps News Tampa Bay.


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