ORLANDO, Fla. _ Markeith Loyd has been captured after a nine-day manhunt in search of the murder suspect, the Orlando Police Department announced Tuesday.
Loyd, 41, was arrested at 7 p.m. in an abandoned house, Orlando Police Chief John Mina said at a news conference. When law enforcement surrounded the house, Loyd tried to escape through the back sliding-glass doors, then surrendered through the front doors.
Loyd was wearing body armor and had two guns in his hands when he came out of the house. Mina said Loyd threw down his guns when he saw the law enforcement surrounding him, but "resist(ed) arrest." No shots were fired.
Loyd has been wanted since Dec. 13, when investigators say he fatally shot his pregnant ex-girlfriend, Sade Dixon, 24, and injured her brother when he rushed to help her. Orlando Police Lt. Debra Clayton was trying to capture him Jan. 9 when she was slain.
Danny Banks, the special agent in charge of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in Orlando, said law enforcement officers learned Tuesday afternoon that Loyd may be at the house where he was eventually captured.
They spotted him, and about two dozen officers, deputies and state and federal agents surrounded the house, Banks said. That number quickly escalated to "several dozen. The reason for that is that we know what his propensity is for escape, for escaping perimeters."
The manhunt was coordinated out of the FDLE office in downtown Orlando, Banks said, and involved OPD, the Orange County Sheriff's Office, FDLE, the U.S. Marshals Service and the FBI.
"In my now 23 years in law enforcement I don't know that I know of a better example of a unified group, across federal, state and local law enforcement ... on one mission."
Loyd's capture, he said, was "a very good example of teamwork."
Mina said Loyd was captured and placed into Clayton's own handcuffs, as a "tradition in law enforcement that goes back many years."
"To put her handcuffs on the bad guy ... is meaningful to her family and to her law enforcement family," Mina said.
Mina said he called Clayton's husband immediately after Loyd was taken into custody.
"He was relieved and happy, and also upset to know he was arrested right around the corner from Debra's mother's house," Mina said.
Video showed Loyd, in red pants, a gray shirt and his hands cuffed behind his back, being pulled from a Sheriff's Office vehicle. He was then escorted and pushed into law enforcement headquarters by more than a half dozen law enforcement officers, some of them deputies in green uniforms, others in plain clothes but with masks over their faces.
Loyd exclaimed, "They beat me up! They beat me up!" to nearby cameras as law enforcement took him into the building for questioning Tuesday night.
His bloodied face appeared beaten with swollen eyes and lips as he was escorted inside. Mina flashed a wide smile to cameras as Loyd was taken in to custody.
"The injuries looked minor to me," Mina said.
One of Clayton's longtime family friends, Jack Williams, said, "I'm extremely, extremely glad that he has been captured, but honestly speaking, I wanted him to put up a fight so they'd kill him. ... I will be more at peace once he's been sentenced and put to death because he's a menace to society, and he doesn't need to be living here amongst us."
Williams also said, "I prayed day and night, noontime, morning time ... I prayed for him to be captured and brought to justice. Now I pray for a conviction."
About 10 Orlando Police vehicles and three Orange County Sheriff's Office patrol cars were seen on Raleigh Drive about 8 p.m.
"Woo, yeah, they got him," said area resident Tina James as she walked to retrieve her car at the Sunoco gas station on Raleigh Street. "If you can kill a police officer who else will you kill? Really!"
People gathered outside Timber Sound apartments, which has an entrance facing Lescot Lane, and watched as police as 4 police officers blocked off the entrance to the road about 8:15 p.m.
James, who lives nearby, said she worried because Loyd was on the loose.
"I was like, 'Thank you, Jesus,'" said nearby resident Jackie Roy. She did not know him but said neighbors said he grew up in the neighborhood.
Roy said her two sons catch the city bus every morning near Lescot to Orlando Christian Prep school.
"We had people here in fear," Roy said. "He didn't have anything to lose."
Roy said she heard a helicopter hovering and saw police gathering this afternoon and was hoping they had caught him.
Terri Sokolovic, a close friend of Clayton, was shopping in Wal-Mart when her phone rang with news of Loyd's arrest Tuesday evening. Her eyes welled with tears as she said "praise god," aloud.
"I'm happy they caught him," Sokolovic said. "I'm happy he's not out there with his armor shooting anybody or taking anybody's life."
The two became fast friends after meeting at a charity event at Camping World Stadium in 2015. Last year, Clayton spent two days at Sokolovic's home to take care of her following a surgery.
"The public is free from his reign of terror," Sokolovic said.
The arrest happened just hours after Mina said he was added to the U.S. Marshals Office top 15 most-wanted fugitives list.
Crimeline had received about 1,500 tips in the nine days since Loyd killed Clayton. There was a $125,000 reward out for information leading to his arrest _ the Marshals Service added another $25,000 Tuesday.
Mina said at the news conference Tuesday night the arrest was not made by the aid of a tip, but rather as a result of "great police work."
As the manhunt that plagued the area for more than a week came to a close, the Orange County Sheriff's Office thanked citizens on Twitter "for their care and concern."
Orange County Sheriff Office deputy First Class Norman Lewis also was killed in a traffic accident Jan. 9 during the search.
Orlando City Commissioner Regina Hill, who worked with Clayton on anti-crime initiatives and was a close friend, wrote on Facebook, "CAPTURED!!!!!!! Debra Thomas and Sade can Rest IN Peace!!!! The Community did it!!"
Thomas was Clayton's name before she got married last year.
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer thanked law enforcement on Twitter for capturing the accused killer.
"Thank you Orlando Police and partners for capturing this fugitive," Dyer said. "Prayers continue for families of fallen officers."
Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs also chimed in on social media, expressing pride and excitement.
"Manhunt has ended! Continued prayers for the families of Lt Debra Clayton and DFC Norm Lewis," Jacobs tweeted. "Great work by our heroes in law enforcement!"
