JACKSONVILLE — A Florida woman shot and killed her boyfriend and his brother, then she kidnapped their mom at gunpoint and forced the woman to put her fingerprints on the trigger, authorities said.
A jury has now convicted 45-year-old Iris Williams of two counts of second-degree murder, kidnapping with a firearm, tampering with evidence and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, the State Attorney’s Office for the Fourth Judicial Circuit announced May 7.
Williams’ public defender declined to comment to McClatchy News on the case, citing office policy.
The mother of the two slain men told officers that she was cooking dinner on October 17, 2023, when Williams came inside, and the mother offered Williams food, according to an arrest report filed in Duval County.
The mom said she went to her bedroom after cleaning up, then she heard a series of gunshots. She came out and saw one of her sons injured in his bedroom, and he told his mom, “She shot me,” police said.
Williams also shot her longtime boyfriend in the head as he sat in the living room, according to prosecutors.
Then Williams, still armed, took the mom hostage and told the older woman to get into her car, saying “we got to go, we got to go,” the mom recounted to police.
Williams held the woman at gunpoint and forced her drive to a gas station and pump gas, then made her drive to a motel, police said.
Inside the motel room, Williams wiped the gun down and forced the mom to hold it and put her hand on the trigger to get her fingerprints on the weapon, the mom told officers.
They spent hours there before Williams drove the woman back home, stopping to throw the gun off a bridge, and gave the mom’s phone back, investigators said.
The mom realized one of her sons was still breathing and called 911 shortly before 5 a.m., but he died at a hospital, according to prosecutors and police.
Officers said they found Williams outside the home and took her into custody, but she denied shooting the brothers.
Williams had been previously convicted of manslaughter and was prohibited from having a gun, according to the arrest report.
By OLIVIA LLOYD/McClatchy News
Olivia Lloyd is a National Real-Time Reporter for McClatchy covering the Southeast. She is based in South Florida and graduated from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Previously, she has worked for Hearst DevHub and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
