Osceola County Sheriff’s detectives have closed two unsolved cases, bringing long-awaited answers to the families of the victims, officials said.
Seventeen-year-old De’Andre Nathaniel Wellnitz was stabbed to death at a house party at 163 Ivy Lane in Kissimmee on June 24, 2007. The investigation went cold after months of work.
A person of interest in the case was found in Orlando in September 2025. Deputies said the person said he was struck during a fight and picked up a kitchen knife and waved it to keep others away. The sheriff’s office said it was determined to be self-defense, and no charges were filed.
The other case was the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Jommil Baez-Quinones in February 2022. Deputies initially released info saying the man was an 18-year-old who was found shot to death in the area of Indian Pointe Circle.
The case was reopened in October 2024, and investigators located and arrested 23-year-old LEG with the help of U.S. Marshals. The state attorney’s office filed charges in September 2025.
“Along with the internal team from the agency, we extend our gratitude to Ashley Garner and her team at FDLE, for their partnership and experience. The State Attorney’s Office has collaborated with this team, every step of the way. Without all the components participating in this review, success would not have been attained,” the sheriff’s office said in a release.
Sheriff Chris Blackmon said that the office’s cold case unit was formed in 2024 with a group of detectives who received special training. The collaboration with FDLE and the state attorney’s office has been especially important in working on older cases, Blackmon said.
“These cold cases are very time-consuming,” Blackmon said. “The two cases resolved, they’ve taken over a year to conclude with factual findings. One case involved 13 to 14 months of work. The other case was about 11 months of work. While they’re doing that work, they also have their daily workload as other cases coming to them. That’s hundreds of hours for each team member, and they have additional duties while they’re working the cold cases.”
Blackmon urged the public to help resolve more cases.
“We have six cases up of the 32 remaining cases we have open,” he said.
The number for Crimeline is 1-800-423-TIPS (8477).
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Source: clickorlando
