One man was shot and killed in Deltona on Thursday in what officials are calling a road-rage incident gone wrong. The confrontation happened at around 9:11 pm in the vicinity of Fisher Drive and Leland Drive in Deltona, according to a report by the Volusia Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies responded to the 911 call and found that the reported shooter was still on-scene, and willing to provide his side of the incident to deputies. He reportedly told them that he’d passed white Dodge Charger on DeBary Ave after it slowed in front of him. The Charger then began following him with its high beams on, the man said.
After that he said the Charger backed off and the incident seemed to be over. But it then re-approached, he said, when he turned off Providence Blvd onto Fisher Drive. It sped up, drove alongside him, and pulled ahead to cut him off, he said. With both vehicles stopped, the Charger’s driver is said to have gotten out and walked toward the man, yelling and holding a gun.
The driver of the other vehicle said he saw the man brandishing a gun, and grabbed his own firearm in response. When the Charger driver raised the gun, he said he fired several rounds out of his own vehicle, administering lethal gunshot wounds.
Another witness in the area was interviewed by detectives, describing the incident in a way that reportedly the shooter’s account. They said they’d seen the Charger’s driver swerving in the road and cornering the other vehicle, then exit and point a gun at its occupant. They said they heard the shooter say “I don’t want any problems” more than once before the shooting commenced. After that, they said they saw the shooter approach the victim and try to give him aid. After responding, deputies were able to identify the deceased Charger driver as 37-year-old Kenyon Ashley, a Deltona resident. His next-of-kin were notified of what’d happened, and police recovered both guns from the scene plus shells, ammunition, and their vehicles.
The State Attorney’s Office Homicide Investigation Unit was contacted by the Volusia Sheriff’s Office about their investigation, and as of now no criminal charges are being filed. Further investigation will take place before a final decision is made by the would-be prosecutors. The VSO gave no indication that any major threads remained unsolved in the case.
Chris Gollon is a Flagler County resident since 2004, as well as a staple of the local independent music scene and avid observer of Central Florida politics, arts, and recreation.