The suspect had barricaded himself in an apartment with four children. An armed suspect who barricaded himself inside an Orlando, Florida, apartment along with four child hostages shot and killed all of them and then shot himself, police said. Gary Lindsey Jr., 35, was found dead along with children ages 1, 6, 10 and 11. Two were his. Two were his girlfriend's. Police found the five bodies upon entering the apartment around 9 p.m. on Monday, City of Orlando Police Chief John Mina said at a press conference later that night. Officers had been communicating with Lindsey, trying to reach a peaceful solution, but Lindsey had a poor phone connection, Mina explained. When officers tried to get Lindsey another phone to continue negotiations, they saw at least one child had been shot and decided to enter the apartment. "The situation has a tragic and sad ending," Mina said. "We realize it's been a difficult day for the entire community." The standoff began Sunday night, shortly after Lindsey's girlfriend contacted police to report that he'd battered her. She met officers outside and directed them toward an apartment in the Westbrook complex, Mina said, and shortly thereafter Lindsey fired a shot that critically wounded an officer around 11:45 p.m. That officer, Kevin Valencia, suffered a "very serious and significant injury," undergoing surgery Monday morning at Orlando Regional Medical Center, Police Chief John Mina said. He remained in critical condition early Tuesday, but he's expected to survive. Valencia has been on the force since 2016. Approaching the scene with other officers, he was shot in the eye when Lindsey fired at them through a door from inside the apartment, according to ABC Orlando affiliate WFTV, citing police and fire department sources. "We've been through this before. It's very hard," Mina said earlier on Monday. "It's very traumatic to have one of your officers shot in the line of duty. We're just praying that he's going to be OK." Lindsey previously had been arrested on domestic violence and arson charges and was on felony probation. The shooting of the officer comes about 17 months after Sgt. Debra Clayton, a 17-year veteran of the Orlando Police Department, allegedly was gunned down by a man suspected of killing his pregnant former girlfriend. Clayton was shot four times Jan. 9, 2017, during a confrontation with suspect Markeith Loyd, 42, outside a Walmart in Orlando. Clayton's death prompted Florida Gov. Rick Scott to remove Orlando-area State Attorney Aramis Ayala from prosecuting the case because she refused to seek the death penalty. Scott appointed a special prosecutor, who filed a motion seeking capital punishment against Loyd, who is scheduled to go on trial in September.<doc-sep>ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — After a standoff of more than 21 hours, officers entered an apartment where a felon with a gun had barricaded himself with four children and found them all dead, a police chief said. The hostage situation began when the girlfriend of Gary Wayne Lindsey Jr. left the apartment and told police she had been battered. Lindsey then fired at responding officers, seriously wounding one of them. Orlando Police Chief John Mina said at a press conference just before midnight Monday that Lindsey, 35, was found dead in a closet when officers entered the apartment around 9 p.m. Mina said officers tried to offer one of their phones to Lindsey, whose phone had spotty service, and saw that one of the children had been killed. Authorities went in hoping to rescue the others, but found all of them dead from gunshots. “Our hearts go out to all the families involved,” Mina said. The children with Lindsey ranged in age from 1 to 12. Two of them were Lindsey’s and two were the girlfriend’s, he said. A police spokeswoman said Tuesday that the medical examiner, as part of an investigation, would determine when the children were killed. The girlfriend had called police late Sunday to report she had been beaten and she managed to get out of the apartment. Responding officers were fired upon. Officer Kevin Valencia was shot and was in critical condition but is expected to survive, Mina said Monday. One officer was able to return fire. Valencia is in his late 20s and has been with the police department since 2016. Court records show Lindsey had an extensive criminal history involving arson, battery and theft. He was on probation for several charges including arson. Judy Pepper, who lives in the apartment complex, said that she had fallen asleep on the couch after watching a Sunday night baseball game on television when she heard four loud gunshots. “It just went, ‘Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop,'” Pepper said. She looked out the window and saw three people carrying a police officer onto the grass. She said other officers arrived, cut open his shirt and appeared to be putting bandages on his neck. Then, they put him in a patrol car and sped away. “Hell, yes, I was absolutely terrified,” she said. Officers evacuated other residents of the complex in the middle of the night and blocked off adjacent roads. They were allowed to go home early Tuesday. Police have not yet identified the four children killed, but an attorney representing the family reached out to Orlando media outlets, identifying them as 1-year-old Dove, 6-year-old Aidan, 10-year-old Lillia and 12-year-old Iraya. Attorney Walter Benenati also created a GoFundMe page to cover burial expenses.<doc-sep>A Florida man shot a police officer and killed four children before turning the gun on himself during a nearly 24-hour standoff with authorities, who tried in vain to prevent the massacre. Gary Wayne Lindsey Jr., a felon out on probation, shot Orlando police officer Kevin Valencia when he and others responded to a domestic dispute at an apartment complex near the Universal Orlando theme park at about 11:45 p.m. Sunday. A woman, who said she was Lindsey’s girlfriend, had fled the apartment after she was allegedly assaulted by the 35-year-old ex-con, authorities said. Officers returned fire and Lindsey retreated into the apartment, where he held four children hostage. Negotiators engaged Lindsey in talks five times in which they urged him to turn himself in and not harm the children. “Our main concern right now is the safety of the children in that apartment,” Orlando Police Chief John Mina told reporters during the standoff. Earlier that evening, Mina said: “We believe they’re still alive at this time. We just implore him to release those children to us unharmed." But around 9 p.m., police tried to offer a telephone to Lindsey, whose own phone had spotty service, and saw that one of the children had been killed. Police entered the apartment and found the other three hostages dead as well, Mina said. Iraya Lopez, 12; Lillia Lopez, 10; Aidan Lindsey, 6, and Dove Lindsey, 1, were identified as the victims by family attorney Walter Benenati identified the children to WKMG-TV. "We have no idea when those children lost their lives," Mina told reporters on Monday. Two of the children were Lindsey’s, while the other two are children of the girlfriend, officials said. "Our hearts go out to all the families involved," Mina said. Lindsey was found dead in a closet, 21 hours after the standoff first began. Lindsey had an extensive criminal history, including arson, battery and theft, according to court records obtained by NBC News. He was on probation for arson and other charges. Officer Valencia, who was reportedly shot in the temple, was listed in critical condition but is expected to survive. "We’re still asking for your thoughts and prayers for him as well," Mina said. Officer Valencia has been with the police department since 2016. RELATED STORIES<doc-sep>
ORLANDO, Fla. — A man who police say shot an officer before barricading himself in a Florida apartment killed the four children he had been holding hostage before killing himself, police said Monday. Orlando police Chief John Mina said at a news conference just before midnight that the suspect — who was identified as 35-year-old Gary Wayne Lindsey Jr. — was found dead in a closet when officers entered the apartment nearly 24 hours after the standoff began. Mina said officers tried to offer a telephone to Lindsey, whose own phone had poor service, and saw that one of the children had been killed. Authorities then entered the apartment hoping to rescue the others at around 9 p.m., but all were found dead. The children's ages ranged from 1 to 11, Mina said. Orlando Police Chief John Mina. John Raoux / AP Officers had earlier responded to a domestic violence report and were fired upon, police said. Officer Kevin Valencia was shot and was in currently critical condition, they said. He is is expected to survive, Mina said. One officer was able to return fire. Valencia, who is in his late twenties, has been with the police department since 2016, Mina said. Court record shows Lindsey, 35, had an extensive criminal history involving arson, battery and theft. He was on probation for several charges including arson. Judy Pepper, who lives in the apartment complex, told the The Orlando Sentinel that she had fallen asleep on the couch after watching a Sunday night baseball game on television when she heard four loud gunshots. "It just went, 'Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop,'" Pepper said. She looked out the window and saw three people carrying a police officer onto the grass. She said other officers arrived, cut open his shirt and appeared to be putting bandages on his neck. Then, they put him in a patrol car and sped away. "Hell, yes, I was absolutely terrified," she said.