Deputies: Nephew fatally stabbed Davenport aunt

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In Polk County a man wanted since may found after deputies say he killed his aunt and attempted to kill his own father.

Deputies say Pedro Vega Jr. stabbed and beat his estranged back in May and has been wanted ever since. He spent years in prison for sexual battery and burglary and now he'll likely be put away for the rest of his life.

Early Wednesday morning, deputies say Elva Carpio woke up to lights shining in her window. Her Davenport neighborhood is typically quiet, but not today.

“You just don't know who you live next door to. I keep to myself, but it's very shocking. You don't know who your neighbors are,” she said.

Next door, deputies say Pedro Vega, Jr. had broken into his family's residence and stabbed his aunt to death. Polk County deputies say she was the one who watched out for him. 

“When you will murder the lady who loves you, who helps you, who overlooks all of your bad criminal past. This is evil in the flesh,” Carpio said. “It’s shocking. It's very sad. Never would expect something like this.”

Deputies also found Vega, Jr.’s 70-year-old father, Pedro Vega, Sr. with his hands and feet bound by tape. He had been stabbed 23 times, according to the sheriff's office. He is expected to survive his injuries.

Sheriff Grady Judd said, “Father, who was in critical condition, told the deputies as he was being rolled to the hospital for emergency treatment that, ‘My son did this.’”

Deputies say Vega, Jr., armed with a rifle, broke into another home next door where his estranged wife lives. Judd says neighbors heard shots being fired.

The unidentified resident who fired the gun believes he hit Vega, Jr., deputies say.  

Investigators think that’s when he went back to his family’s home, leaving a trail of blood behind him.

Deputies say he stole his father's pick-up truck and drove off. Vega, Jr. was found hours later on the side of the road near Kissimmee.

“He's a really bad guy. He will go to prison for the rest of his life for these horrific deeds,” Judd said.

Vega, Jr. Is being treated for gunshot wounds at a hospital.

The Polk County Sheriff's Office says Vega, Jr. will be charged with first-degree murder, four counts of attempted first-degree murder, false imprisonment, armed burglary, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. 

he will likely be charged with one count of and at least three counts of attempted first-degree murder and armed home invasion. He has already been charged based on the outstanding warrant for violation of probation, burglary with battery and aggravated battery.

As the events unfolded, nearby Ridge Community High School on Orchid Drive, and Horizons Elementary School on Forest Lake Drive were placed on heightened security. School buses were rerouted but there was no impact to school start times, according to school district officials.