Police say two suspects fled the neighborhood and were later arrested in Lake Mary.
WINTER PARK, Fla. — Two window installers were shot Tuesday afternoon after confronting men accused of stealing tools from a home under construction in Winter Park, police said, setting off a chase that ended in Lake Mary with two suspects in custody.
The shooting happened just before 4 p.m. on the 200 block of Overlook Road, south of State Road 426, according to the Winter Park Police Department. Investigators say the workers were on the job when two men began taking equipment from the site. When the workers stepped in, gunfire followed. By Wednesday, police had identified the suspects as Frederick Callaway, 37, and James Robinson, 28, and said both were facing a series of felony charges.
Police said officers arrived to find two adult men with gunshot wounds in the street near the work site. Both were taken to a nearby hospital. Authorities later said the men were in stable condition. Coworkers described a fast-moving and chaotic scene at a house where a crew had been installing windows. Javier Riano, whose company was working at the home, said his employees had noticed a suspicious car outside before the shooting. He said workers saw the suspects enter the house, grab tools and begin loading them into a vehicle. “They just started grabbing stuff like it was Home Depot or something,” Riano said.
Riano said the confrontation turned violent almost immediately. He told local reporters one employee was shot three times and another was shot more than once. He said one worker suffered wounds to the stomach, thigh and groin area, while the other was hit in the leg and thigh. Another worker, Lazaro Perez, said he was only a few feet away when shots were fired. He said he dropped to the ground after feeling the first shot and then stayed with the wounded men while help was on the way. “They were screaming that it hurt a lot,” Perez said. “I was next to them, holding their hands, making sure they were OK.”
Hours later, the street still showed signs of the attack. Evidence markers were placed near the job site, and at least one power tool remained in the roadway, according to local television video from the scene. Neighbors said the first sounds were confusing in a neighborhood where construction noise is common. Vivy Day, who lives nearby, said she first thought she heard a nail gun before the screaming began. Another neighbor, Sebastian Reeves, said the workers appeared to be trying to protect their own equipment. The setting added to the shock: a residential Winter Park block in daylight, with crews working at a house and neighbors nearby.
Police said the suspects left in a green Ford Fusion, and officers tracked the car into Seminole County. The pursuit stretched about 18 miles, according to local reports, and ended near the 3800 block of Lake Mary Boulevard at or near the entrance to the Lake Mary Village shopping plaza. Witnesses there said multiple patrol cars boxed in the car and officers took two men into custody. One witness said equipment could be seen sticking out of the vehicle. Police have not publicly detailed exactly what was recovered from the car, but investigators have said the shooting grew out of a burglary and theft of tools from the construction site.
By Wednesday afternoon, police had named Callaway and Robinson as the suspects. Authorities said the pair was facing charges that include attempted felony murder, armed burglary of a structure, armed robbery, discharging a firearm from a vehicle within 1,000 feet of a person, aggravated fleeing or attempting to elude a law enforcement officer, and discharging a firearm in public. Local television station WKMG reported the two men made their first court appearance and were being held without bond in the Seminole County Jail. Court records and a fuller account of the prosecution had not yet been outlined publicly in the reporting available Wednesday, and police said the investigation remained active.
For the workers and the company, the case is now about recovery as much as prosecution. Riano said the injured men are like family to him and asked that their names not be released publicly. He said the emotional damage has spread through the crew, with some workers now afraid to return to job sites. “All these guys got families,” he said. “All they do is just work, and it’s just not fair.” The words captured the blunt reality of a routine construction day that ended with surgery, a regional police chase and felony charges.
The suspects remained in custody Wednesday, and police said more information would be released as the investigation continues. The next public milestones are expected to be additional court proceedings and any updated filings from prosecutors.
Author note: Last updated March 25, 2026.