Two Arrested in Lake Wales Mud Hole Shooting

Polk County Sheriff's Office deputies arrested two men Thursday in connection with a shooting that injured four people at a party last weekend at the Lake Wales Mud Hole. Richard William Fante, 20, of Lakeland, and Cordae DeShawn Hammonds, 19, of Avon Park, face charges after the incident early Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026.

The shooting occurred at the property on Alturas Babson Park Cut-Off Road, west of U.S. 27. Deputies responded around 12:18 a.m. to reports of multiple people shot during a party advertised on social media. Approximately 150 to 300 people attended the event.

Four victims sustained gunshot wounds. An 18-year-old Lakeland woman, still at the scene when deputies arrived, was hospitalized in stable condition with a gunshot wound to the abdomen. Three other victims, identified as a 20-year-old Lake Wales woman (right thigh), a 19-year-old Lakeland man (left arm), and a 21-year-old Eagle Lake woman (left foot), were transported to hospitals by friends before law enforcement's arrival.

Sheriff Grady Judd commended the investigators. "This was an incredibly dangerous thing for young people to do and it’s a miracle nobody was killed," Judd said. "I can’t tell you just how proud I am of everyone who worked on this investigation."

Fante and Hammonds each face four counts of attempted 2nd-degree murder and 62 counts of culpable negligence. Both were taken to the Sheriff's Processing Center. The investigation remains ongoing, and authorities indicated more arrests are possible.