Officials: Barricaded murder suspect fires on law enforcement in Panama City

PANAMA CITY BEACH, FL (CBS News) — A sheriff’s spokeswoman in the Florida Panhandle says a suspect identified as Kevin Robert Holroyd is barricaded inside a Panama City apartment where he has exchanged gunfire with law enforcement officers. The 49-year-old is wanted in connection with a homicide in Walton County, according to the Bay County Sheriff’s Office.

Bay County Sheriff’s spokeswoman Ruth Corley says deputies tried Tuesday to knock down the door to the apartment, but that the suspect had holed up inside and there was heavy gunfire. He had barricaded the door from within, the sheriff’s office said.

One person, an EMS worker, was injured when they were grazed by a bullet, the office said.

Bay County Sheriff’s Office chief investigator Jimmy Stanford tells CBS affiliate WECP the suspect is believed to be the same person sought in a suspicious death at a home in Santa Rosa Beach. The Walton County Sheriff confirmed that the incidents are linked, and identified the victim in the Santa Rosa Beach home as 30-year-old Clinton Street.

Street was shot to death, the post said. Police did not immediately release more information. Santa Rosa Beach is about 40 miles northwest along the Florida coast from Panama City.

Walton County police also were at the scene in Panama City, where witnesses told the station they heard more than 50 gunshots in the area. A grocery store and nearby schools were evacuated.

Kim Allagood, owner of a nearby pizza restaurant, said “tons and tons” of police descended on the area and she locked down her restaurant for close to two hours amid sporadic shooting.

The Panama City News Herald initially reported that a suspect barricaded himself inside a bank. A bomb squad vehicle was seen in the bank parking lot. But Lawrence said the bank is near the apartment building and it appears the suspect is confined to the apartment building.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott talked to Bay County Sheriff Tommy Ford about the situation in Panama City. John Tupps, a spokesman for Scott, said the main point of the call was to offer state law enforcement assistance.