Company 'heartbroken' after workplace shooting near Orlando kills five

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An arrest photo from 2010 of John Robert Neumann Jr. (Seminole County Sheriff’s Office)(ORLANDO, Fla.) — After a “disgruntled” ex-employee returned to his former workplace near Orlando, Florida, shooting and killing five people, the company said it is “heartbroken,” calling the attack “unspeakable.”

The suspect, 45-year-old John Robert Neumann Jr., shot and killed himself after allegedly shooting his former co-workers at Fiamma Monday in what the sheriff described as “likely a workplace violence incident.” Most victims were shot in the head and some were shot multiple times, according to Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings.

Fiamma, which is part of an Italian company that manufactures awnings and accessories for RVs, said in a statement, “The Company is heartbroken following the unspeakable attack upon our loved ones and employees. In these dark hours we ask for thoughts and prayers for all the victims of this tragedy and their families.”

Neumann was allegedly “singling out” victims, Demings said. When Neumann encountered a young woman who was a temporary employee, he allegedly pointed the gun at her and told her to get out of the business, Demings said. It appears Neumann reloaded at least once during the shooting spree, Demings added.

Eight people inside the business survived, Demings said.

Neumann, a U.S. Army veteran who was discharged honorably in 1999, was a “disgruntled” former employee who was fired from Fiamma in April, said Demings.

The deadly shooting came three years after the suspect was involved in another workplace violence incident there.

In May 2014, authorities responded to Fiamma after an employee — who was not one of the five people killed on Monday — accused Neumann of hitting him on the back of the head and knocking him to the ground, according to the incident report.

The victim told police that Neumann “told him not to call the police or tell the boss or he may take his money,” the incident report said. The victim said Neumann also “tried to choke him with the strap to his book bag.”

In the incident report, police noted that the victim “initially stated he approached John [Neumann] and he was punched several times. He then changed saying he approached John [Neumann] and when John [Neumann] went toward him aggressively he began to run and John [Neumann] hit him on the back of the head.”

The victim, who police said did not appear to have any injuries, told authorities that “he had problems in the past with John [Neumann] but thought they were resolved.” Neumann left the scene before police arrived and was not interviewed, police noted.

Demings said no charges were filed at that time.

The victims of Monday’s shooting were identified as Robert Snyder, 69; Brenda Montanez-Crespo, 44; Kevin Clark, 53; Jeffrey Roberts, 57; and Kevin Lawson, 46.

Shelley Adams told ABC News that her sister, a Fiamma employee, saw someone lying on the floor as she walked out of the bathroom. She was “just hysterically crying,” Adams said of her sister, who called her on the phone. “She kept saying, ‘My boss is dead.'”

Next week marks the one-year anniversary of the June 12, 2016, mass shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando that killed 49 people.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott said in a statement, “Over the past year, the Orlando community has been challenged like never before.”

“I ask all Floridians to pray for the families impacted by this senseless act of violence,” Scott said.

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