[PHOTO CREDIT: Lake County Sheriff’s Office]
[Original Publish Date: 08/24/20]
TAVARES, Florida — A Tavares man involved in a shooting that killed a man at a troubled park in Tavares was picked up by U.S. Marshals Friday on a warrant, according to Tavares Police Lt. Sarah Coursey.
Russell McFadden, 29, who gained local infamy after being featured on TPD’s Facebook page in July, was captured on surveillance video striking Terrence Hill, 43, in the head with a butt of a gun and firing multiple shots in his direction at Ingraham Park, according to a probable cause affidavit. Hill was found with multiple gunshot wounds and died from his injuries; police believe another man killed Hill. A warrant for McFadden’s arrest was issued in April.
The City of Tavares closed the park in May for a short period of time. “The park was closed while the city added new lighting, landscape, fencing, and other aesthetic features to make it a safer place for all to enjoy,” Coursey said. It has since been reopened.
McFadden was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, discharging a firearm in public and shooting into an unoccupied building. He was released from the Lake County Jail on $100,000 bond the same day he was picked up. “The bond was set and met, it is our hope that he does not reoffend,” Coursey told Lake Legal News.
The murder of Hill in March was just one instance in a spate of shootings that have plagued the city for months. Eustis Police Department has also seen a pair of shootings in recent weeks and police believe they are all connected.
Coursey said earlier this month police need the public’s help. “Nobody is cooperating, “Coursey told LLN after the city’s most recent shooting. “It is very disheartening for us [police]. This is our city too. We normally don’t have this level of crime.”
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Our Editor-in-Chief, Marilyn M. Aciego, began writing for Lake Legal News in 2010. Born and raised in Lake County, she is a graduate of Umatilla High School and Lake-Sumter State College. She started her journalism career at LSSC, where she was editor of both student publications, The Angler and The Odyssey. Her professional career began at the Daily Commercial in 2004 where she covered cops and courts the majority of her time there until she left in 2009. Currently, along with being Editor-in-Chief of Lake Legal News, she is the Florida bureau chief for an international media organization. She has made more than two dozen appearances on live national television, including Nancy Grace and the Greta Van Susteren show, along with her appearance on Evil Twins. Contact her with breaking news, tips, and feedback by sending an e-mail to 352Tips@gmail.com. You can also contact us on our Facebook page — and make sure you “Like” and “Follow us” there. [PHOTO CREDIT: Bonnie Whicher]
