Sheriff says the Kissimmee suspect was a recurring “threat” in the subdivision before Saturday’s triple shooting.
KISSIMMEE, FL — A 29-year-old man who neighbors and deputies considered a constant threat is charged with fatally shooting three out-of-state tourists outside a vacation rental around 12:13 p.m. Saturday in an Osceola County subdivision near Walt Disney World, authorities said.
Deputies arrested Ahmad Jihad Bojeh at his home next door less than an hour after the gunfire and booked him into the Osceola County Jail on three counts of first-degree murder. The men who died — Robert Kraft, 70, of Holland, Mich.; his brother, Douglas Kraft, 68, of Columbus, Ohio; and their friend, James Puchan, 68, of Ohio — were visiting Central Florida for the Mecum car auction and had extended their stay after their rental car broke down. Investigators say there was no prior dispute between the victims and the suspect, calling the attack random and “cold-blooded.”
Deputies were called to Indian Point Circle in the Indian Point/Indian Hill subdivision shortly after noon Saturday. They found the three men down near the driveway and front of a short-term rental home, each with apparent gunshot wounds. Osceola County Sheriff Christopher Blackmon said the suspect lived immediately next door and was well known to patrol units because of frequent calls for service. “He was a threat to that neighborhood all the time,” Blackmon said. He also said investigators have found no evidence of an argument, warning or exchange before the shooting. “There absolutely were no issues,” he said. “This was just random.” Bojeh was taken into custody at a nearby residence about an hour later without deputies firing a shot, the sheriff said.
Officials said the victims had come to Osceola County for the Mecum Car Show and were waiting for assistance after their vehicle malfunctioned. A neighbor across the street told reporters he heard a burst of gunfire while doing yard work, looked up and saw a man continue shooting as one victim fell. He estimated hearing more than a dozen shots. Family members of the victims released a joint statement calling the men “three wonderful” fathers and grandfathers who were “senselessly murdered” while on a guys’ trip. The sheriff’s office said deputies recovered evidence from the suspect’s home and seized firearms as part of the investigation. Detectives have not released a motive and said there is no indication the men and the suspect knew each other.
Public records show Bojeh was acquitted by reason of insanity in a 2021 Osceola County case after a Wawa gas-station shooting where a driver was wounded and random cars were struck. The case, which drew mental health evaluations, ended with the acquittal and the defendant’s release from jail supervision. The sheriff said his agency continued receiving calls tied to the suspect’s address in the years since, describing him as a “frequent flyer” in reports. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier on Tuesday criticized how the earlier prosecution unfolded, saying the insanity verdict left a dangerous man free in the community. Court dockets in the older case show a competency review still on the calendar for April 7, underscoring how the prior matter remained active in the court system even as detectives worked the new killings.
Records released so far list Saturday’s scene as 296 Indian Point Circle, a street of vacation homes about eight miles from the Magic Kingdom corridor and south of Orlando. Deputies said the victims had extended their stay by one day while arranging a replacement rental vehicle. The sheriff’s office said Bojeh did not make a statement at his initial appearance on Sunday. Jail records list no bond. The agency said the three autopsies are underway at the District Nine Medical Examiner’s Office and that ballistic testing will determine whether any firearm recovered from the suspect’s residence was used in the killings. Investigators have not said how many casings were found, and they have not detailed the trajectory analysis or the sequence of shots.
Neighbors told local reporters they had seen squad cars at the suspect’s address before and sometimes heard late-night disturbances. One resident who witnessed the gunfire said he yelled to family members to get inside as shots rang out. “I saw the person fall down,” the neighbor said, adding that the shooter “walked up” and continued firing. Families of the dead said the trio had no contact with the suspect before the attack and asked for privacy as they mourn. Sheriff’s officials said the quick response likely prevented additional victims in a subdivision where vacationers and full-time residents share the same blocks of cul-de-sacs and short-term rentals.
Prosecutors in Osceola County have not announced a formal charging decision beyond the initial first-degree murder counts booked at the jail. If the state files a notice of intent to seek the death penalty, that filing could come at the arraignment stage after a grand jury indictment. A case number for the homicide investigation is expected to appear on this week’s court docket. The sheriff’s office said detectives are continuing to canvass the neighborhood for security video and have requested any footage from noon to 1 p.m. Saturday. A bond hearing is not scheduled because the defendant is being held without bond on capital charges. The sheriff’s office said it will provide the next public update after the medical examiner completes preliminary autopsy reports.
Officials emphasized that motive remains unknown. Detectives are reviewing calls for service tied to the suspect’s address and cross-referencing prior incident reports. The families of the victims said they plan to release funeral arrangements in Michigan and Ohio once the medical examiner releases the bodies. Meanwhile, the car auction continued as scheduled a few miles north of the crime scene, with a moment of silence observed by attendees who learned of the attack from news alerts and social media posts. Residents spent Monday and Tuesday placing flowers at the edge of the driveway, where yellow evidence markers had dotted the pavement a day earlier.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the suspect remained in the Osceola County Jail, segregated from the general population, according to a spokesperson. Detectives were expected to finish door-to-door interviews and submit firearms for lab testing by midweek, then forward their first probable-cause packet to the state attorney. The next publicly set date on the older insanity-acquittal case is April 7, when a competency review remains on the docket in Orange-Osceola Circuit Court. Authorities said they will release the time of the first formal advisories hearing in the homicide case once the clerk posts the schedule.
Author note: Last updated January 20, 2026.