Florida authorities have arrested a 16-year-old white suspect in connection with the killing of a Black teenage girl who was shot during an attempted robbery and left for dead on the side of a road near her home in Cape Coral.
Thomas Roy Stein, a resident of the neighboring community of North Fort Myers, faces aggravated murder charges in the March 17 shooting death of 15-year-old Kayla Rincon-Miller.
Stein made his first appearance before a judge on March 20 and was ordered to be held without bond.
Thomas Roy Stein, 16, is accused of fatally shooting Kayla Rincon-Miller, 15. (Photos: Facebook)
He was due back in court for his arraignment on April 8.
Police are continuing a manhunt for several suspects who allegedly accompanied Stein, while investigators said they believe the crime was not a random act.
Meanwhile, family and friends said they are devastated and struggling to come to terms with Kayla’s tragic slaying.
“[I’m] honestly not good at all. I’ve been crying all day every time I think of her,” Bailee Powell told WBBH-TV, the local NBC affiliate in Fort Myers. “It’s not real. I’m in denial right now. She’s just literally my best friend since I can’t even imagine. We went everywhere together, football games, track meet, Sunsplash.”
The outgoing young girl was enjoying her spring break and hanging out with friends, as she often did when she was tragically killed.
Moments before the fatal encounter, Kayla and her two friends had left a movie theater on foot and were walking to a nearby McDonald’s around 9:30 p.m. when an SUV rolled up suddenly and blinded them with the high beams.
Several suspects jumped out on the shoulder of the road demanding money and valuables, investigators said.
During the scuffle, one of the individuals opened fire, hitting Kayla in the chest.
The shooting happened near the intersection of Southeast 20th Street and Southeast 16th Place, where a witness reported hearing three gunshots in the night.
“It should strike a nerve that a young, vibrant 15-year-old girl was shot dead in the street,” Cape Coral Police Chief Anthony Sizemore said.
Someone in the area also called 911 to report the shooting.
The suspects fled before law enforcement arrived, while emergency crews were not able to save Kayla, and she was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.
The two surviving victims were uninjured and told authorities they could not identify the gunman.
Initially, law enforcement had few clues to work with, and no solid leads developed immediately.
A day after the shooting, forensics investigators with the Cape Coral Police Department combed through the crime scene with the help of a K9 from the Lee County Sheriff's Office, and detectives placed at least five evidence markers on the ground, reports said.
Three days later, pol
