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Handyman shot, killed elderly Florida couple in possible extortion attempt, deputies say

Handyman Frederico Gondola is accused of fatally shooting a couple in Kissimmee, Florida, after doing work for them.

KISSIMMEE, Fla. — A Kissimmee couple found dead inside their home last week were shot to death by their handyman, according to the Osceola County Sheriff's Office.

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Roosevelt Dixon and his wife, Janette Dixon, were found shot to death inside their Meadow Oaks Circle home on July 14.

Deputies said the couple appeared to have been dead for some time before they were found. Both had been shot in the head, and it appeared it happened as the couple were sitting down to breakfast.

There was no forced entry into the home and a server for the couple’s surveillance system had been ripped out of its place, deputies said.

Investigators searched the couple’s cellphone and discovered that the last person Roosevelt Dixon spoke with was Frederico Gondola. Gondola told investigators he worked as a handyman for the couple, had been to the home several times and sometimes worked on their computer.

Deputies eventually tracked down a friend of Gondola's who told them that Gondola had reached out to him to ask for help robbing an elderly couple. The friend told deputies that he told Gondola he didn't want to take part in the robbery.

The friend told deputies Gondola contacted him again on July 9 and asked to meet him at a 7-Eleven, where he said he had shot the couple and needed help getting rid of their bodies. The friend agreed, but then backed out once he got to the neighborhood.

Cellphone records showed the friend had driven to the home, and surveillance video from the 7-Eleven showed the friend and Gondola meeting up.

When deputies confronted Gondola again, he told them he was planning to extort the couple, who had about $1 million in savings and life insurance.

He was arrested on first-degree murder charges.