A man shot and killed outside a Waffle House early Monday near Orlando was a Bethune-Cookman University graduate in Orange County for his job, his cousin said.
Orange County sheriff’s investigators identified the shooting victim as Herbert Johnson, 23, said the agency’s spokeswoman, deputy Ingrid Tejada-Monforte.
Johnson, who now lives in Fort Lauderdale, was in Orlando on business as he was an entrepreneur/party promoter often hosting various events and entertainment venues in and around the South Florida area, Stacey Johnson said.
“This is an awful tragedy for the family as almost 10 years ago Herbert’s mother was the victim of an awful death where she was slain at her workplace here in Broward County while she was the manager at Taco Bell in Oakland Park,” said Johnson’s cousin, Stacey Johnson.
According to South Florida media reports, Herbert Johnson’s mother, Tikkitress Johnson, was murdered on Aug. 10, 2009, at an Oakland Park Taco Bell.
Tikkitress Johnson, 39, was the manager of the Taco Bell and was stabbed to death with a kitchen knife by two suspects who pretended they were at the restaurant applying for a job. Herbert Johnson’s mother had offered the suspects something to drink, authorities said.
Orange County deputies are still investigating Herbert Johnson’s death and are reviewing video surveillance tapes and working to determine what happened before the 3:02 a.m. shooting that left Herbert Johnson dead in the parking lot of a Waffle House on East Colonial Drive, Tejada-Manforte said.
Tejada-Manforte said Orange County deputies were called to the restaurant about a disturbance with shots fired.
Witnesses said Herbert Johnson was shot during an argument in the parking lot. Investigators are also trying to determine how many shooters were involved in the incident, Tejada-Manforte said.
Herbert Johnson graduated from B-CU in Daytona Beach in May 2017 with a degree in business and started as an events promoter along with two friends with whom he did business, Stacey Johnson said.
“He was a bright young man with an awesome future set ahead for him,” a grieving Stacey Johnson said. “This is such a horrible reliving of events for our family and close friends.”
Stacey Johnson said her cousin was in Orlando for one of his events NewEra. He enjoyed providing something fun for teens and people where they can enjoy themselves safely, she said.
“He was really a good kid,” Stacey Johnson said. “I am the eldest cousin, I'm 49 years old, so I've watched him grow up and I'm very, very close with his father and was very close with the family during the death of his mother.”
The father, also named Herbert Johnson, could not be immediately reached Monday afternoon.
Anyone with information or who was at the Waffle House is asked to call Crimeline at 800-423-8477 (TIPS).
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