A Circle K clerk in Ormond-by-the-Sea, Florida, allegedly admitted to shooting and killing an off-duty Edgewater Police Officer because he was “having a bad day.”
Store clerk Eduardo Felipe Labrada Machado confessed to the Sept. 15 murder of Officer David Jewell, according to a statement from the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office on Sept. 16.
“The defendant said he was having a bad day on his drive to work, and thought about shooting Jewell earlier,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement shared on social media. “When he arrived at work and saw Jewell, he used a handgun he recently purchased to shoot him multiple times at close range. He did not say anything to Jewell prior to shooting him.”
Machado, 24, told police he had previously seen Jewell, 45, in the store with a firearm and felt “afraid” of him. He did not clarify if he knew Jewell was a police officer or if he had ever seen him in uniform.
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Authorities added that family members said Machado had “been diagnosed with a mental health disorder in the past and had indicated he was hearing voices.” They also described him as “quiet and playing a lot of video games.”
“I’m not going out on a limb on saying this: That gun was bought for one purpose and one purpose alone. That gun was bought to assassinate Police Officer Jewell for whatever reason this guy was thinking,” Sheriff Mike Chitwood said in a press conference, according to News 4 Jax.
The weapon used was found in the backseat of Machado’s car, the VCSO reported.
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Machado has no prior criminal history, although there was a weapons complaint in 2023 about him shooting guns at Tomoka State Park. He is a legal U.S. resident with a green card and has lived in the country for ten years, the VCSO said.
Machado’s first court appearance was on Tuesday. A judge denied his release on $1 million bond, according to Fox 35 Orlando.
A GoFundMe was created by the Edgewater Police Department to help Jewell’s family with future expenses.
“The Edgewater Police Department is heartbroken over the tragic and senseless loss of Officer David Jewell, a dedicated Edgewater Police Officer, loving husband, and devoted father,” the EPD said in a statement.
