Last week, Bryan Deleon, 29, was convicted of 1st degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. On September 24th, 2022, at approximately 12:30am, deputies from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call regarding a man in the roadway covered in blood near the area of Lake Marion Creek Road and Midway Road in Haines City.
The victim was found on McMan Road, lying off the side of the road closer to the tree line with multiple gunshot wounds. He died shortly after arriving at the hospital. The victim’s last words were “My friend set me up,” “Black Mercedes,” and “They set me up.”
Bullet shell casings found at the scene matched ammunition deputies found at a storage facility in Orlando that Bryan and Felix were captured on surveillance video leaving at approximately 11:30 pm on September 23, 2022. Deleon and Velazquez were pulled over in Orlando while driving the black Mercedes that was reported in the area at the time of the incident.
Felix Velazquez was previously convicted and sentenced to life in prison on November 19th, 2024. State Attorney Brian Haas thanks Assistant State Attorney Ralph Guerra, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, and the FBI for their hard work and dedication pursuing justice in this case.
