On August 13, 2023, Nathan Johnson, a 24-year-old, was shot and killed in Bithlo, Florida, a area within Orange County. The incident occurred in the early morning hours, around 4:55 a.m., when deputies from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting call on the 18300 block of 12th Avenue.
Upon arrival, deputies found Nathan Johnson with gunshot wounds. He was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead due to life-threatening injuries.
The investigation revealed that a fight had occurred in the front yard of a residence between Johnson and Justin Mullins, who is the father of Johnson’s fiancée. Both individuals were reportedly intoxicated at the time of the altercation.
According to the fiancée, who witnessed the incident, the fight started because Mullins believed Johnson had pulled his wife’s hair. Mullins initially claimed to investigators that the shooting was a result of a drive-by shooting, but the fiancée disputed this, stating there was no drive-by and that Mullins was the one who shot Johnson. She also mentioned that Mullins had purchased a handgun "off the street" the day before the incident, and a gun found next to Johnson’s body matched the one Mullins had shown her.
Justin Mullins, 38, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder with a firearm in connection with Johnson’s death. The investigation and subsequent interviews with the witnesses and Mullins himself led to the conclusion that Mullins was responsible for the fatal shooting.
