Surveillance video, witness testimony highlight day 2 of Randazzo murder trial

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Day two of the murder trial for two men accused in the killing of a Christopher Randazzo featured testimony from witnesses who said they heard gunfire the night the Coral Springs firefighter was killed, while prosecutors used surveillance video to lay out a timeline connecting the suspects to the area.

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“I had heard the sound of a pop,” said witness Cathy Byers, who was staying at the resort. “It sounded like it was just outside our room.”

“It was like a snapping pop,” witness Mark Terry testified.

“I heard a pop and then a flash,” said Tom Kinsloe, who lives across from the resort. “It sounded different than fireworks.”

Prosecutors say the shooting took Randazzo’s life nearly seven years ago.

“I found an unresponsive male laying face down,” testified Broward Sheriff’s Office Deputy Lawrence Klkrman.

Randazzo’s body was found near the Southern Seas Resort in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea in October 2019.

“Our door was taped off,” Byers testified. “We looked out the window to see what was going on. When we couldn’t get the door open, that’s when we saw the body.”

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The 39-year-old firefighter was found without shoes. Investigators believe that’s because prosecutors say Torrey Holston and Jose Romero were robbing Randazzo after shooting him in the back of the head, taking his iPhone, sneakers, wallet and keys.

Jurors also reviewed surveillance footage recovered by Broward investigators showing Randazzo arriving at and later leaving a nearby bar the night he was killed. The footage captured what prosecutors described as his final steps toward the resort.

“Could this have been a self-inflicted gunshot wound?” a prosecutor asked the medical examiner.

“No, it’s in the back of the head,” testified medical examiner Gertrude Juste.

Video shown in court also captured the then-19- and 20-year-old defendants at a nearby gas station before traveling what prosecutors say was the same route as Randazzo.

“The cause of death was a gunshot wound,” Juste testified.

Both men are charged with first-degree murder, robbery with a deadly weapon and conspiracy.

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A third suspect has already pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact.

Day three of the trial resumes Monday.