West Palm Beach, Florida – Authorities arrested a 46-year-old man in Georgia in connection with the October 2023 fatal shooting of a Lake Park man in West Palm Beach. Gary Tromane Everett was taken into custody on Feb. 21 at his residence in Milledgeville, Georgia, based on a murder warrant, according to spokesman Mike Jachles.
The shooting incident initially left the suspect and victim unidentified as a 911 caller reported witnessing someone dragging a body from a car near 45th Street and Military Trail around 3:30 a.m. on Oct. 10. The victim, Victor Devore Howard, 37, was found alive but tragically succumbed to his injuries an hour later at St. Mary’s Medical Center in West Palm Beach.
Following the discovery, Everett approached a Riviera Beach police officer at Blue Heron Boulevard and Congress Avenue around 4 a.m., claiming that his cousin had been shot in Gramercy Park. However, authorities debunked Everett’s statements, leading to a thorough investigation by the West Palm Beach Homicide Unit detectives.
Evidence gathered during the investigation confirmed that Everett was the shooter and that Howard’s death occurred inside the victim’s work vehicle. The Palm Beach County medical examiner determined that Howard died from a single gunshot to the head, with a single casing found in the car.
Additionally, detectives uncovered that a significant amount of cash was missing from the victim, with Everett unable to explain how Howard was shot or why he was covered in blood inside Howard’s vehicle.
Everett now faces charges of second-degree murder with a firearm and is being held at the Georgia Baldwin County Jail, awaiting extradition to Florida. The case serves as a reminder of the tragic consequences of violence in communities and the importance of thorough investigative work in ensuring justice for victims and their families.