Woman arrested in gun incident on the water

A 51-year-old female liveaboard was arrested Friday regarding a gun-related incident on the water near Cudjoe Key earlier in the week.

Lelena Sue Moses was charged with aggravated assault with a weapon without intent to kill.

The Sheriff’s Office was notified at 2:44 a.m. on Aug. 14 of shots fired on the water off Blimp Road. The first caller, a boater, stated shots were fired from another boat. About a minute later, another call came in. The second caller, later identified as Moses, told the Sheriff’s Office that she and her husband were on their houseboat anchored off Blimp Road. Moses told Sheriff’s Office Communications Specialists that she and her husband were armed and that her husband fired two warning shots at two boats that were bothering them.

Road patrol deputies responded, but were unable to locate the houseboat. Sgt. Evan Calhoun was able to contact Moses by cell phone. Moses told Sgt. Calhoun that two of boats had been coming near their houseboat and bothering them. Moses added that she and husband had left their houseboat to bully net at one point and the two boats came very close to their houseboat. Moses claimed the two boats were, “sneaking around,” their houseboat. Moses told Sgt. Calhoun she and her husband returned to their houseboat shortly thereafter. She stated that the two boats then got on plane and began driving toward the houseboat at a high rate of speed. Feeling threatened, Moses told Deputy Calhoun that she instructed her husband to shine a spotlight on her while she was holding an AR-style rifle.

Moses told Deputy Calhoun her husband then fired a warning shot into the air with a 9mm pistol he was holding. The two boats continued and the husband fired a second warning shot. Moses told Deputy Calhoun the boats got within 10 feet of their boat and asked what was going on. Moses told Deputy Calhoun that she instructed the other to leave.

Det. John Gabay was assigned to investigate. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission also took part in the investigation. The victims — a man and woman who were also bully netting in separate boats — were interviewed. The victims said they never saw Moses’ husband fire any shots, but they did see Moses with an AR-style rifle. The victims told investigators they didn’t know why shots were fired in the incident. They stated a woman, later identified as Moses, was ordering them to stop and to not move, but they were confused as to why Moses was behaving in a such a way. The victims stated they take the same route home all the time as they bully net regularly in the area and were not sure why Moses believed they were a perceived threat.

Moses and her husband and their boat were found on Big Pine Key after the incident with the help of the FWC.

Moses was taken to jail.

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