Florida woman tracks down accused purse thieves, escapes gunfire

DELAND, Fla. - A woman in DeLand, Florida, tracked down the thieves who stole her purse, leading to a confrontation at a fast-food restaurant and subsequent gunfire.

The incident began at the Taylor Place Apartments, where a community officer reported the woman was getting items out of her car when the suspects drove up, grabbed her purse, and fled.

Hours later, the woman received a notification that her credit card had been used at a nearby Checker's. Determined to reclaim her belongings, she and two others drove to the fast-food restaurant.

According to the sheriff’s office, the woman found the suspects in the drive-thru lane, spotted her purse in their car, and retrieved it, including her credit card, before the suspects drove off.

However, the story didn’t end there. While driving in DeLand, the woman spotted the suspects' car again and decided to follow it. The suspects noticed and fired shots from the back seat as they drove on Springs Garden Avenue. Fortunately, no one was injured.

Deputies later tracked down the suspects' car in Deltona. Willie Goosby III and Makhi Edwards were arrested for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and discharging a firearm from a vehicle. Alyssa Levy faces charges of being a principal to aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

A neighbor who witnessed the police activity expressed surprise and praised the victim’s determination.

"I don’t know if I could have done that, but adrenaline starts running. I might have! Because who knows what she had that they could have gotten. Kudos to her," the neighbor said.

While Levy has bonded out of jail, Goosby and Edwards remain in custody.