Brother and uncle of Saplin Court shooting victims says he’s in disbelief

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - Just before Wednesday morning’s crash that killed a Tallahassee police officer, Leon County deputies say Tyrone Cleveland shot two of his children and their mother inside the family’s Saplin Court home.

Family members say although this was not totally out of character for Cleveland, they were still in disbelief and devastated when they found out what took place.

“When [my niece] called me, she was crying, and she said that her dad went crazy, and her dad shot up the whole family,” Edret Williams said.

Williams recalled the moment his 15-year-old niece called him, saying she had been shot by her father.

“I got to TMH (Tallahassee Memorial Hospital) as quickly as possible,” Williams said.

Williams said when he arrived, he learned that his 19-year-old niece and their mother, his sister, had also been shot.

“This was unexpected. We just went out of town probably last month and everything seemed normal,” he said. “Then this happened.”

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Both of the teen girls were shot in their legs according to Williams, but they are in recovery. His sister, on the other hand, suffered more severe injuries. He said she was shot twice in both ankles and one time in her leg.

Neighbors near Saplin Court said they heard about a dozen shots last night after midnight, but never imagined something like this could happen in their safe and quiet community.

“Man, I hope he gets what he deserves, that’s all I can say,” Williams said.

Williams also said that when he learned that Cleveland may have killed a TPD officer after shooting his own family, he was even more heartbroken. He hopes justice is served for everyone involved.

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