Last Updated on: 6th September 2021, 03:40 pm
Who is Bryan Riley of Florida, US? Biography, Wiki
Bryan Riley is a Florida man and former Marine sniper accused of killing a baby and three other people in a “mass murder” at a Polk County home before turning himself into police.
An 11-year-old girl was shot multiple times, but she is expected to survive.
Authorities believe Riley did not know the victims. He was wounded in a shootout with MPs and was treated in a hospital before being detained.
Bryan Riley’s Age
His current age is 37 years.
What Was The Incident?
Police arrived at the apartment around 4:30 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021, Polk County officials said at a news conference.
No MPs or police officers were injured in two shootings between Riley and police, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said.
Riley, who was wearing a bulletproof vest and other protective gear, as well as various weapons, told police that he was taking methamphetamine.
Who Were The Victims of This Incident?
One of the victims was identified as Judge Gleason, 40. The remaining victims have not been identified as the Florida Marsy Act requires permission from the victim’s family to release the names.
One of the victims, as per the police, was a 33-year-old woman who was shot while holding a three-month-old baby. The boy was also shot. A 62-year-old woman, mother, and grandmother of two of the other victims, was the fourth victim.
Police said Riley also killed the victims’ family dog Diogi after the Polk County Sheriff’s Office K-9 was shot and killed along with Sheriff Matt Williams during a lawsuit in 2006, Judd said.
The 11-year-old, a Lake Gibson High School student, suffered seven gunshot wounds and underwent surgery at a Tampa hospital. Judd said, “She is certainly expected to recover, and for that we thank God.”
What Police Have Investigated Up Till Now?
Riley, 33, a self-proclaimed survivor, told MPs, “You know why I did this,” Judd said at the news conference after his arrest.
Judd said that nine hours before the murders, Riley went to the same home near Lakeland, Florida. And he told a man and a woman outside that “God sent me here to talk to one of his daughters.”
Judd told Riley that the woman he was looking for did not live there. Judd said that Riley told his girlfriend that God had spoken to her and that he had to save a woman named Amber who was going to kill herself.
“He was a sailor. He served four years and was honorably discharged and served as a reservist for three more years. He was used in Iraq in 2008 and Afghanistan in 2009-2010. During that time he was named a sniper,” Judd said of Riley, who lives in Brandon, Florida, about 35 miles from the crime scene.
Riley works as a security officer, Judd said. He had a secret gun license, Judd said.
“We found his girlfriend from his cooperative and she said she had been with him for about four years. She said she had PTSD,” Judd said.
Also Read: Who is Justice Gleason? Biography, Wiki, Age, Polk County Shooting, Found Dead, Family And Tributes
Riley’s friend told investigators that she saw him depressed but that she never saw him violent.
“She said she today a week ago, last Sunday, that he was doing security at a church in Orlando. And he came home and said that God had spoken to him and that he now he could speak directly to God. And she said that she had never seen behavior like this before. But here he wasn’t violent either,” Judd said.
The bailiff added: “Virtually no criminal record. When he was a teenager, he had a small load and then almost nothing. We are not dealing with a traditional criminal here. But we are dealing with someone who had some mental health issues at least last week, suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, and we don’t know if we will follow him to the military or not.”
Police are still investigating and Riley has yet to be charged, authorities said. It was not clear at first if he had hired an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
