ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A man accused in a double fatal shooting at an Orlando club was ordered to be held without bond on Wednesday.
Deputies said 33-year-old Handel Newell is facing two counts of first-degree murder for the shooting at The Spot Events around 4:30 a.m. on New Year’s Day.
ARRESTED: Handel Newell, 33, on two counts of First Degree Murder for the New Year’s Day double homicide at The Spot Events off of Edgewater Dr. Great job by our Homicide detectives! pic.twitter.com/hjsX300y86
— Orange County Sheriff's Office (@OrangeCoSheriff) January 8, 2020
Investigators said two men were shot and killed in the incident.
The Sheriff’s Office said the victims were in the VIP area of the club at the time of the shooting.
“I saw a group of guys walk toward the entrance where we came in from. They stopped, they turned around and they were facing the back and two guys were passing behind us as they were about to leave and they got shot,” witness Mona Roberts told News 6 last week.
One of the victims was identified as Joseph Broady, who was a DJ promoter, according to court records.
During Newell’s initial appearance, the state said an investigation revealed that Newell is also known as a promoter who goes by the name “Indian.” According to deputies, witnesses identified “Indian” as the person who opened fire inside the club.
"Anonymous information was passed on to the security officer and relayed to detectives that a promoter called 'Indian' possibly shot Broady," Assistant State Attorney Elaine Fusco said.
According to an arrest affidavit, investigators believe Newell had a previous encounter with Broady months earlier at the same club.
"The Facebook page for 'Indian' provided information that four months prior to the murders, he was kicked out of the club and after being kicked out, he fired rounds in the parking lot, because he was mad at Broady," Fusco said.
The state said Newell's wife told investigators the two were at the club New Year's morning.
According to records, a search warrant uncovered two firearms and clothing matching the gunman’s description at Newell’s home.
About 250 people were at the club during the shooting, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
There is no surveillance video of the shooting, according to deputies.
#breaking: LARGE CRIME SCENE. Witnesses tell me 2 people were shot at Club Spot on Edgewater. One person just taken on a stretcher @news6wkmg pic.twitter.com/5HqOJLy9vK
— Justin Campbell (@JCampbellNews6) January 1, 2020