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ORLANDO, Fla. - A Seminole County jury has convicted a Sanford man of first-degree murder in the 2022 ambush shooting that killed 18-year-old Isaiah Diaz at an apartment complex.
Jurors found 23-year-old Thallas Inman guilty Tuesday of first-degree premeditated murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder, shooting into a building or vehicle, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Prosecutors said Inman and two accomplices opened fire with assault-style rifles on a red Kia Optima parked outside the Hatteras Sound Apartments on Nov. 20, 2022, unleashing more than 50 rounds.
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Diaz, who was in the car with two friends, was struck multiple times and died of what a medical examiner described as "a massive amount of wounds." Another passenger was hospitalized with gunshot injuries, while a third suffered minor wounds.
Investigators initially appealed to the public for help by releasing surveillance video of the gunmen. Inman’s mother, Tammy Spivey, later identified her son in the footage, pointing out his clothing and physical features. But when she refused to testify in court last week, Circuit Judge Michael Rudisill held her in contempt and sentenced her to nearly six months in jail.
Inman now faces a mandatory life sentence. Judge Rudisill set sentencing for Oct. 7. Police have not arrested the other men involved in the attack.
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The conviction comes less than a year after Inman was released from state prison in December 2021. He previously served six years for attempted murder in Volusia County.
Inman also remains under indictment in a separate case, accused of taking part in a January 2023 drive-by shooting that targeted members of a rapper’s entourage. That attack killed 31-year-old Princess Tolliver and injured five others.
The Source: The information in this article comes from the Seminole County Clerk of Courts.