A delay in the case of the Kissimmee man police say gunned down three tourists staying in a rental home next door to his home may tip off if state prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
A competency hearing scheduled for Monday for Ahmad Jihad Bojeh has been postponed to May 29. The court granted a motion to extend time for prosecutors to comply with Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.181, which states that prosecutors must file a written notice of intent to seek the death penalty within 45 days of arraignment in capital cases.
An arraignment hearing was held on Feb. 18, and a grand jury file an indictment for three counts of murder against Bojeh on Feb. 26.
Bojeh was arrested Jan. 17 by deputies who were called to reports of a shooting in the Indian Hill subdivision off Poinciana north of Old Tampa Highway. Three men were found shot to death in front of an Indian Point Circle home later identified as Robert Luis Kraft, 70 of Holland, Mich., and Douglas Joseph Kraft, 68, and James Puchan, 68, of Columbus, Ohio. Deputies said they “quickly located and detained” Bojeh, who lived next door to the property the three rented on vacation while visiting the Mecum Auto Auction, as their suspect.
Bojeh had numerous other run-ins with the law and was known as a “frequent flyer in the Sheriff ’s Office” according to Sheriff Chris Blackmon. In May 2021, Bojeh was charged with attempted murder when police say he fired a gun at parked vehicles—at least one was occupied—at a West U.S. 192 Wawa parking lot. After over a year of medical evaluations to determine if he was competent to go through a traditional jury trial, Bojeh instead was found not guilty by reason of insanity and was forced to undergo outpatient mental health treatment. That treatment, which included medication, stopped in 2023 due to the cost going up.
Bojeh remains held in the Osceola County Jail without bond.
