Florida Man Accused of Killing Friend While Pistol-Whipping Him During Dispute Over Pool Pump

Law enforcement officials in Florida say a man is facing a murder charge after he allegedly shot and killed his friend during an argument over a pool pump.

On the afternoon of June 8, Joshua Miller, 28, went up to the victim’s car parked in the driveway of a St. Cloud home, kicked the door and then opened it, Osceola County Sheriff Marcos Lopez said at a recent press conference.

Miller then repeatedly yelled to the victim, 29-year-old Joseph Beck, “Where’s my pool pump?” according to Sheriff Lopez.

Miller then allegedly started pistol whipping Beck with a gun, which went off, striking Beck in the torso, Lopez said.

The suspect fled the scene, and paramedics transported the victim to a local hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead, authorities said.

Sheriff Lopez said deputies were able to arrest Miller at a nearby home in the early morning on June 9.

Miller faces charges of felony murder, and burglary of conveyance, officials said. It is not clear if Miller meant for the gun to go off during the incident.

“That’s not for me to decide,” Lopez noted. “There’s a lot of different possibilities that could have happened during this incident, but the moral of this story is don’t pistol whip somebody. This isn’t a mobster movie or Grand Theft Auto or a video game. This is real life and if you don’t know how to properly handle a firearm, you shouldn’t be holding one, especially beating someone with it.”

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According to an arrest affidavit obtained by the Orlando Sentinel, home surveillance video allegedly captured the shooting and Miller’s mother identified her son as the suspect.

Beck’s ex-wife, Brittany Harrell, said the suspect and victim were “really close, hanging out every other day.”

Beck was a father of three children ages 9, 6, and 5.

Miller was booked into the Osceola County Jail and was being held without bond.