ORLANDO, Fla. – Three days after the execution of a search warrant at a tattoo shop resulted in an officer-involved shooting, video and documents obtained by News 6 show the moment Orlando police officers started shooting when a man opened the back door of the shop.
The video, shared by a person who asked us not to disclose their identity, is nearly 50 seconds long and begins as a SWAT truck pulls up to the back of a strip mall on Edgewater Drive.
[VIDEO: New updates after Orlando tattoo parlor standoff leaves 1 dead]
Officers are seen emerging from the truck before a man in the corner of the video frame opens the door. When he sees officers, he runs back inside, while officers open fire.
Natalie Birch-Escribano, who identified her son, Kaleb Williams, 20, as the person who died at the shop, said she did not see Williams in the video.
[WATCH: Footage shows Orlando SWAT team during shooting at tattoo shop]
In a release on Monday, police said the investigation first kicked off in September when the department received an anonymous tip reporting illegal drug sales inside the tattoo parlor along Edgewater Drive.
Since then, the location has been under intense scrutiny, with officers surveilling the business and social media for evidence, investigators explained.
“During that time, officers observed multiple hand-to-hand transactions consistent with the sale and delivery of illegal narcotics,” the release reads.
On Friday afternoon, though, the investigation came to a head when officers arrived at the tattoo parlor to serve a search warrant related to drugs and firearms, police said.
According to Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith, multiple suspects were gathered there.
“The investigation involved multiple suspects with extensive criminal histories, including burglary, robbery with a firearm, possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, sex offenses, drug offenses, auto theft, and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon,” he said.
Shortly after police arrived, they spotted a man leaving the tattoo shop armed with a rifle that resembled an AK-47, Smith added.
Officers then fired at the suspect, who fled back inside the business, according to the police department. About an hour later, Orlando SWAT entered the building.
About an hour later, Orlando SWAT entered the building, finding one man dead inside, police added. He was identified as 20-year-old Kaleb Williams, who was one of the subjects associated with the search warrant.
[BELOW: New video shows moment Orlando SWAT opened fire at tattoo parlor, killing 1]
“Williams was standing near the rear door when officers fired at the armed individual,” police wrote. “A stolen firearm was recovered in Williams’ possession, on his body.”
Police also said that of the eight other people associated with the warrant, three were located in the business.
“Charges for those individuals, as well as for the registered gang member armed with the AK-47 style rifle, are pending the outcome of the investigation,” the release says.
The officers were not injured and were placed on administrative leave, Smith announced.
Meanwhile, police said the following items had been recovered during Friday’s search:
- Five firearms
- Several boxes of handguns and rifle ammunition
- 190 grams of cannabis (some prepackaged for sale)
- One case of Narcan
- Paraphernalia, including scales and a vacuum sealer with bags
On Monday, local community members expressed mixed reactions to the latest police updates.
“I have friends that know him, that are friends with him, so it was, you know, it was a little moment that I seen my friends sad and, you know, going through it,” said Kamail Myers, a local shopper.
Myers contested the significance of the stolen weapon found on Williams, stating, “That shouldn’t be the cause of someone dying. A lot of people out here got guns that’s not supposed to have it... And he worked at the tattoo shop. So that was his home of business.”
A vigil remains in place outside the tattoo shop for Williams as the community processes the latest developments in the case.