Three Sailors, One House, and a Dispute That Ended in 30+ Gunshots"
They were all Navy sailors living under the same roof on Hanging Moss Drive, but when Clay County deputies arrived at 11:30 p.m. Wednesday night, two of them were already dead in the front yard and the third was standing there as the suspected shooter. Taylor Marques Lomax, 22, allegedly fired more than 30 rounds at Noely Makenda, 21, and Jordyn Forrestier, 20, hitting them multiple times after a physical fight broke out involving his wife, and now both young women are gone while Lomax sits in jail charged with two counts of second-degree murder.
The sequence of events that led to the double homicide started when Lomax's wife visited the home earlier that evening and got into an argument with Makenda and Forrestier, though investigators haven't disclosed what exactly sparked the initial confrontation. What's clear is that the verbal argument escalated into a physical fight in the front yard, and somewhere in the middle of that altercation, Lomax grabbed a handgun and started shooting. Neighbors in the normally peaceful Oakleaf Plantation community heard the gunfire and immediately called 911, with one resident reporting they heard eight to ten shots before dispatchers instructed them to stay inside for safety, while another neighbor recalled hearing desperate cries for help echoing through the night. When deputies arrived, they found Makenda and Forrestier lying in the grass with fatal injuries, and Lomax's wife was the one who had called 911 to report the shooting. Investigators interviewed her at the scene and released her, but Lomax was arrested and charged, and he's now being held without bond while detectives work to understand how three sailors living together ended up in a situation where two of them are dead. The Sheriff's Office is urging anyone with details about the case to come forward by calling (904) 264-6512 or using the SaferWatch app with reference number 2025028638, because there are still gaps in the timeline that need filling. Friends and fellow service members have since flooded social media with tributes to Makenda and Forrestier, describing them as courageous young women whose commitment to serving their country should never be forgotten, and their families now face the unbearable task of saying goodbye far too soon.
