American charged to court for shooting Nigerian woman who knocked her door

The family of Ajike Owens, the Nigerian woman fatally shot in central Florida, United States, after knocking on a neighbour’s door, has sought justice for the deceased.

Following the killing of Owens, who was gunned down by Susan Louise Lorincz, 58, a White woman, the suspect was charged with manslaughter with a firearm, culpable negligence, battery and two counts of assault in the death of the mother of four.

Owens’ mother, Pamela Dias, who addressed journalists in a press conference on Wednesday, June 7, 2023, lamented the death of her daughter, saying her killing was unjustified.

She said, “When is it okay, in America, to shoot someone (from) behind the locked door? When is that okay?”

“My daughter, my grandchildren’s mother, was shot and killed with her 9-year-old son standing next to her,” Dias said. “She had no weapon, she posed no imminent threat to anyone.”

Speaking further, Dias revealed that one of the deceased’s children is consumed with guilt over his mother’s death.

According to her, the 9-year-old boy, who witnessed the shooting, continued to blame himself because he first told his mom the neighbour had confronted him and his siblings.

“In his soul, in his heart, it’s his fault that his older brother, his baby sister and his baby brother, as well as himself, will never see their mother again,” the grandmother was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, in a statement, Sheriff Billy Woods said, "This was not a stand your ground case but simply a killing.”

“Now many of you were struggling to understand why there was not an immediate arrest,” the sheriff added. “The laws here in the state of Florida are clear. Now I may not like them, I may not agree with them, but those laws I will follow.”

When interviewed, Lorincz claimed that she acted in self-defence and that Owens had been trying to break down her door prior to her discharging her firearm.