ORLANDO, Fla. — The teen charged in the Halloween shooting that killed two men in downtown Orlando will be tried as an adult, Orange-Osceola State Attorney Andrew Bain announced Monday.

The shooter, 17-year-old Jaylen Dewayne Edgar, faces charges of two counts of second-degree murder, according to Bain. He added he plans to present evidence of the shooting to a grand jury to upgrade the charges to first-degree murder.

“It’s a blatant execution in the middle of our streets. That’s something that we can’t have in our community,” Bain said.

At Monday’s press conference, Bain asked anyone with photographs or video recordings of the downtown event that may provide further evidence of the shooting to call his office at 321-235-5300.

Bain said investigators have recovered the gun used in the shooting, and that Jaylen spoke to investigators. However, he did not release any other information, including the motive for the shooting or what the teen told authorities.

“We’re not releasing a lot of information,” Bain said. “It’s still an open and active part of the investigation.”

The two people killed early Friday have been identified as Timothy Schmidt Jr., 19, and Tyrek Hill, 25, according to authorities.

Schmidt, of Weston, was a freshman at the University of Central Florida. Hill, of Minneola, worked for a towing company in Lake County.

The two men were among nine people shot in the melee attended by roughly 75,000 people just after 1 a.m. at Central Boulevard and Orange Avenue. Minutes later more shots were heard at Washington Street and Orange Avenue.

Jaylen was quickly tackled and handcuffed by police after the second round of gunfire as he joined a crowd of panicked people trying to flee, according to authorities and surveillance camera footage.

A 10th person was injured after falling and being trampled by the fleeing crowd. Those hurt are between the ages of 19 and 39, according to police.

Bain said Jaylen arrived at the event with several other people. But he did not provide additional details.

Last November, Jaylen was charged as a juvenile with grand theft of a motor vehicle after he was arrested for driving a car that was reported stolen. Because he was charged as a juvenile, he was released to his parents, according to Bain.

Bain said he now plans to also charge Jaylen as an adult for that crime.

----------

©2024 Orlando Sentinel. Visit at orlandosentinel.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.