A Florida man who shot and killed an Army veteran on his daughter’s birthday will spend the rest of his life behind bars.
An Orange County judge handed Shaun Engram, 29, a life term in prison for the shooting death of 34-year-old retired U.S. Army Corporal Joseph William Torres. Engram was found guilty and convicted by a jury of second-degree murder with a firearm.
Around 2:30 am on May 2, 2021, Orlando Police Department officers who had been securing the downtown corridor along the intersection of East Central Boulevard and North Orange Avenue responded to gunshots two blocks from the Orange County Courthouse. Upon arrival, they found the victim with gunshot wounds and pronounced dead at the scene.
Torres had just bought some food and was heading back to his car through a crowd of sidewalk pedestrians. Then, Engram, angry that the victim cut through, insulted Torres, followed by a heated argument between both men, according to WESH 2. A fight ensued, with Torres punching Engram, then the defendant pulled out a handgun and fatally shot the victim four times.
Later, authorities retrieved surveillance video footage that captured moments that led to the violent altercation. As a result, they identified Engram as the shooter, and the defendant was arrested three days later.
During the sentencing hearing, Engram apologized to the court for his actions but insisted his act was in self-defense based on Florida's stand-your-ground law.
However, the jury didn’t buy it.
That same day, Torres, a father of three, had planned to celebrate his daughter’s fifth birthday, reported WFTV.
Leave a Reply