Raul Lionel Vazquez faces a second-degree murder charge in the shooting death of 56-year-old Daryl Hill in Apopka.
APOPKA, FL — A judge denied bond Wednesday for a 26-year-old man accused of fatally shooting a bicyclist who stopped to intervene in a fight following a vehicle crash in Orange County, authorities and court records said.
Raul Lionel Vazquez is charged with second-degree murder with a firearm in the death of Daryl Alexander Hill, 56. Hill had been riding his bicycle Tuesday morning when he encountered a man and woman arguing after a crash near Plymouth Sorrento and West Ponkan roads, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and an arrest affidavit. Investigators said Hill stepped in because he believed someone needed help.
Deputies were called to the intersection at about 8:30 a.m. after reports of a physical confrontation involving the occupants of a damaged pickup truck. When deputies arrived, they found Vazquez and a woman near the truck and Hill wounded on a nearby sidewalk, according to the affidavit. Orange County Fire Rescue took Hill to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 9:20 a.m.
Witnesses told investigators that Hill approached the pair after seeing them arguing and tried to intervene. One witness said Vazquez and Hill then became involved in a fight and fell into bushes before emerging. According to the affidavit, witnesses said Hill began moving away from Vazquez with his hands raised and called for help as Vazquez went to the pickup and retrieved a firearm.
Investigators said Vazquez fired one shot at Hill. Vazquez acknowledged firing a shotgun but told detectives that Hill had attacked him first, according to the affidavit. Deputies said Vazquez gave several accounts of what happened. Investigators wrote that witness statements indicated Hill was unarmed and was moving away when he was shot.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office described Hill as someone who had stopped because another person appeared to be in distress. His wife, Suzanne Hill, told local news outlets that her husband had just dropped off their 10-year-old daughter for her first day of school and was riding his bicycle home when he encountered the confrontation. She said helping other people was characteristic of him.
Hill’s wife told Spectrum News that the couple had been married for 17 years and remembered him as a caring person who helped friends, relatives and strangers. Community members connected to nearby Wolf Lake Elementary School also expressed sympathy for the family after learning how Hill died. His family planned a private celebration of life, according to Spectrum News.
The homicide case is not Vazquez’s only pending criminal matter. The State Attorney’s Office said he was already out on bond in an unrelated 2025 aggravated assault with a deadly weapon case investigated by Apopka police. A trial in that case is scheduled to begin Sept. 22, according to information provided to Spectrum News. The prior charge is separate from the allegations involving Hill and has not been adjudicated.
A warrant signed Aug. 11 by Circuit Judge Laura Shaffer set no bond on the second-degree murder charge, according to The Apopka Chief. Vazquez appeared before a judge Wednesday, when bond was denied. He remained in the Orange County Jail as the homicide investigation continued. The murder charge is an allegation, and Vazquez has not been convicted in Hill’s death.
Author note: Last updated August 13, 2026.