At 7:17 a.m., Orlando Police Department (OPD) Master Sergeant Debra Clayton radioed in to say that she was attempting to contact a murder suspect at the Walmart at North John Young Parkway and Princeton Street.
Two minutes later, officers radioed in to say that an officer had been shot. Dispatch immediately broadcast a call for help. The first responding officers on scene began CPR.
(Learn More, courtesy of ABC News and YouTube)
Master Sergeant Clayton was transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center where she was pronounced deceased at approximately 7:40 a.m.
Master Sergeant Clayton is married and has one child. She has been with OPD since May of 1999, and was promoted to the rank of Master Sergeant in 2016.
According to the OPD, Sgt. Clayton was extremely active with City of Orlando’s Parramore Kidz Zone, which employs creative outreach to engage a critical mass of Parramore’s children and linking them to positive opportunities.
(Orlando Police Chief John Mina urges Markeith Loyd to turn himself in. Courtesy of CNN and YouTube)
On the OPD Facebook page it is noted, ‘She loved working with kids and they loved her too! Rest peacefully, Sarge.’
The suspect in her shooting death, Markeith Loyd, is wanted for the December 2016 murder of a pregnant woman in Orange County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) jurisdiction.
Loyd was spotted today fleeing in a vehicle from the OPD scene at the Princeton Avenue Walmart, by an OCSO Deputy.
The deputy saw Loyd at North Lane and Pine Hills Drive. Loyd pulled into a nearby apartment complex and fired at the deputy (Attempted Murder on an LEO), striking his unmarked OCSO SUV twice. The deputy was not harmed.
Loyd then carjacked a vehicle and fled again. He later abandoned that vehicle near the intersection of Rosemont and Cinderlane Parkway.
A manhunt remains under way. A $60,000 reward is being offered through Crimeline for information leading to Loyd’s capture (Crimline 800.423.TIPS).
Tragically, OCSO also lost one of its deputies this morning when motorcycle Deputy Norman Lewis was struck by a motorist. He was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced deceased.
OPD’s chaplains have been dispatched and are available to any OPD personnel who wish to talk or pray with them, and the City of Orlando’s very comprehensive Employee Assistance Program is available to anyone who needs it.
Orlando Police Chief John Mina wants to assure the community that the safety and security of our residents and visitors is the Department’s top priority, and that OPD officers continue to work tirelessly, not just to catch this murderer who is at large, but to ensure that everyone remains safe.
He also wants to thank the community for the outpouring of support and prayers that have come in through emails, phone calls and social media.
Markeith Loyd is considered armed and extremely dangerous. We are asking the public to assist us with his whereabouts by calling 911 or Crimeline at 800.423.TIPS. Do not approach him directly.
The last time an Orlando Police Officer was killed in the line of duty was October 4, 2007, when Officer Al Gordon was gunned down in a robbery near an automated-teller machine at Silver Star and North Hiawassee roads, not far from his home.
Information and images Courtesy of the City of Orlando, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and Crimeline.
