4 shot to death in Florida; man sought
Nov 27th, 2009 by Bilal Ali
Six-year-old Makayla Sitton didn’t get to act in The Nutcracker Ballet. The night before she was to go on stage, she was shot to death with three others in a home in Jupiter, Florida.
“God has blessed us with this beautiful girl, and he just took her home a little bit earlier than we wanted,” he said, struggling to hold back tears.
Police were searching Friday for a suspect in the deaths of Makayla and three others: twins Carla Merhige and Lisa Knight, 33, and Raymonde Joseph, 76, police said.
Patrick Knight and Clifford Gebara were wounded in the shooting, police said.
Officers were looking for Paul Michael Merhige, 35, who is thought to have left the area armed, said Jupiter police Sgt. Scott Pascarella. The dead were Merhige’s twin sisters, his aunt and 6-year-old cousin.
Interviews with family members suggest that Merhige “had ongoing resentment” for some of his relatives, said Sally Collins-Ortiz, a spokeswoman for Jupiter police.
One of the victims — Knight — was pregnant, Collins-Ortiz said Friday. The U.S. Marshals have joined the search for Merhige, she said.
The shooting occurred about 10 p.m. ET Thursday. Pascarella said he did not know the motive.
Merhige is thought to have driven away in a blue 2007 Toyota Camry with Florida license plate number W42 7JT, the officer said.