Shooting leaves 3 dead in Manatee County; suspect killed by deputies

MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — The Manatee County Sheriff's Office is investigating after three women were shot and killed Monday evening.

Deputies said they responded to a shooting at the Motel 6 on 68th Street Circle East in Bradenton around 9:15 p.m. When they arrived, they found a 48-year-old woman dead from a gunshot wound.

Witnesses told officers that Javontee Brice, 28, came to the motel and shot his mother for unknown reasons, then fled the area, possibly heading to Georgia, according to the sheriff's office.

Around 9:40 p.m., deputies said they were called to another shooting in the 900 block of 26th Street Court East in Palmetto. There, a 29-year-old woman was shot while sitting in a parked SUV. Palmetto police officers attempted to save the woman's life, but she died about an hour later. Witnesses identified Brice as the shooter.

Deputies said they received reports that another shooting occurred shortly after 10 p.m. at 4800 55th Street in Bradenton. Bradenton police said they learned Brice had shot a woman before fleeing the scene. The woman later died in hospital.

Deputies issued a statewide “be on the lookout” order for Brice’s vehicle. Multiple law enforcement agencies helped track Brice to Hamilton County near the state line.

Manatee County deputies said Brice was shot and killed by Hamilton County deputies after firing at them around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Manatee County detectives said they learned Brice was going to Georga with the intention of killing another person.