Man, Woman Charged in Drug Deal Slaying, Police Say

A man and woman are charged with murder following what Largo Police say was a drug deal gone wrong over the weekend.

Byron Jackson, 32, and Melissa Janet Ortiz, 27, were identified through phone records and then pulled over during a traffic stop after officers spotted them driving near Highland Avenue and Belleair Road.

Police say the two got into a dispute with Stewart Duane Baker, 39, on Saturday as the three were involved in "the sale of illegal narcotics" inside Barker's car.

Barker was found shot to death in a parking lot in the 400 block of Woodrow Avenue Northwest, Largo Police said Saturday.

Witnesses reported seeing the victim inside a parked, silver four-door vehicle with several other people when he was shot, police said. He was left unresponsive in the parking lot as the vehicle fled and was later pronounced dead on the scene.

Jackson and Ortiz were seen driving a silver-colored Mistubishi four-door with a missing rear window at the time of their arrest, according to police.

They were taken into custody and transported to Pinellas County Jail on first-degree murder charges, Lt. Stephen M. Slaughter said in a media release.

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