DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – A man accused of using an AK-47 to shoot a Daytona Beach police officer entered a not guilty plea Thursday morning to seven charges in his case.
Prosecutors said Raymond Roberts Jr., 40, shot Officer Kevin Hird last month. Roberts faces several charges, including attempted second-degree murder and aggravated battery.
Roberts' next court date is scheduled for Dec. 19.
Police said Roberts opened fire near Martin Luther King Boulevard and South Street on Nov. 25 because he planned to confront people who he said "triple-crossed" him.
Instead, Roberts was confront by officers Kevin Hird and Maycon MacDowell and Lt. Jeremy Nikolow. Daytona Beach Police Chief Craig Capri said when the officers got out of the car, Roberts opened fire on them.
Hird was hit in the shoulder. He continues to recover after two surgeries.
After the shooting, Capri called Roberts "a street maggot" and said the "criminal justice system will take care of getting him the sentence he deserves."
“The defendant walked through a residential neighborhood, carrying a gun, and shot at three Daytona Beach Police Department officers in an attempt to kill them," Larizza said.
Roberts faces multiple life sentences if convicted.