Grady Judd announces arrests in 2 separate murder cases: 'The bottom line is we come after you'

Polk County arrests two men in separate murder investigations

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd praised his team on Friday for finding two men wanted in two separate homicides. FOX 13's Evan Axelbank reports.

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd spoke Friday on a pair of arrests in separate murder cases.

Arrest of Angel Gonzalez-Morales

The backstory:

According to Judd, Elijah Johnson was shot on the night of Tuesday, Aug. 12, on the second floor of the Home Suites near the I-4 and U.S. 27 interchange in Davenport.

Johnson ran downstairs and collapsed in the road, according to Judd. He later died at the hospital.

Judd says the shooter, later identified as Angel Gonzalez-Morales, 29, ran into a red sedan with another person inside, then got out a short time later and ran into the woods.

Previous mugshot of Angel Gonzalez-Morales. Courtesy: Polk County Sheriff's Office.

The driver of that car told deputies that Gonzalez-Morales claimed he accidentally shot someone, and the driver kicked the suspect out of the car.

Gonzalez-Morales was caught nearly 48 hours later on Thursday in the Polo Park area, according to Judd. He says in addition to facing a second-degree murder charge, deputies also found a "trafficking amount of fentanyl" in his pocket.

When questioned by detectives, Gonzalez-Morales said he heard gunshots but denied any knowledge of what happened Tuesday night.

Judd also says the murder weapon still hasn't been found, and he wants whoever may be in possession of it to come forward.

"A gun like that on the street will bring you $200 or $300… we’ll pay you $1,000 to give us this gun," Judd said. "Now if you’re sitting there thinking ‘I’m a convicted felon, I got this gun,’ hey, we’ll work through that."

Pictured: Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd speaks at a news conference on Aug. 15, 2025.

Judd says Johnson had an extensive criminal history, but the shooting was still not justified.

"He had a violent history, but I want to underscore that is absolutely unequivocally no reason for him to be shot on this particular occasion," Judd said.

Detectives are still working to determine the motive for the shooting.

Indictment of Troy Cortez Walker

Judd says Troy Cortez Walker, 48, sold cocaine to Irene Anderson, 65, on Sept. 7, 2024.

The next morning, Anderson collapsed as she was leaving home to go to church, according to Judd.

"It’s a new one on me that on Saturday night you go out and buy some cocaine from your drug dealer and you snort a little bit, and then you fire up and go to church on Sunday," Judd said.

Mugshot of Troy Cortez Walker. Courtesy: Polk County Jail.

In October 2024, Walker and 41 other people were arrested in a drug investigation in Bartow. Judd said Friday that he plans to give an update on that case next week.

This week, with Walker still in jail, a grand jury indicted him on a first-degree murder charge.

"The bottom line is we come after you," Judd said. "When you murder somebody in this county, we don’t send a homicide detective. We don’t just send a homicide team. We send a homicide team, an intelligence team, a crime suppression team, a tactical team… you’re going to be arrested."