A man suspected of firing at an SUV carrying a family of four in Auburndale is facing attempted murder charges, police said.
Aaron Chad Delaune, 25, of Slidell, Louisiana was arrested on four counts of attempted felony murder and one count of a shooting into an occupied vehicle, a police report states.
At about 1:20 p.m., police said a family of four, including two 9-year-old children, was traveling in an SUV alongside a group of motorcyclists in the area of U.S. Hwy 92 near Havendale Blvd. The SUV was trying to turn right onto another street and attempted to merge into an outside lane among the motorcycles, but couldn’t move over.
Delaune, who was in a Dodge Charger traveling with the group of motorcyclists was apparently miffed by the lane change attempt, police said, and decided to fire two bullets into the rear lift gate of the SUV.
The bullets traveled through the passenger compartment of the vehicle, but none of the passengers were struck, police said.
While the family drove to the police department to report the incident, another witness followed Delaune’s car down Hwy 92 and managed to get his license plate number and a good description of the vehicle as well as a description of the pistol that was reportedly used, according to police.
Polk County Sheriff’s detectives located the vehicle in the area of U.S. 92 and Fish Hatchery Road. They conducted a traffic stop near Combee Road in Lakeland and Delaune was taken into custody.
Investigators also recovered a .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol, a shotgun, ammunition, and a spent shell casing from inside his vehicle.
No further details are immediately available.
