Mother of victim shot and killed in Cape Coral speaks out for first time

Reporter: Annalise Iraola
Published: Updated:
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Kayla Rincon-Miller and the area where she was killed. CREDIT: WINK News

For the first time, WINK News is hearing from the mother of Kayla Rincon-Miller, who was shot dead in a Cape Coral neighborhood while walking with friends.

The only person arrested in the shooting has been 16-year-old Thomas Stein. According to a new police report, witnesses ID’d him as the driver.

Cape Coral police told WINK News their detectives are actively working on the case. However, they could not release any updates on where the investigation stands on Wednesday.

WINK News got the full police report and now Kayla’s mother is speaking publicly for the first time.

A Cape Coral police report confirmed that 16-year-old Stein did not pull the trigger that killed Rincon-Miller, though he did play a role in the robbery.

The Cape Coral Police Department shared a video of Rincon-Miller’s mother, Luz Rincon, is sharing how she is doing since the murder of her daughter last month.

“We think about her every minute of the day. I miss her every minute. This has been very hard,” said Rincon.

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Kayla Rincon-Miller and her mother Luz Rincon in a picture. CREDIT: Luz Rincon

The night her daughter was killed, her mom dropped her off at the movies earlier. Then she got a call around 9:30 p.m., but it wasn’t her daughter on the phone.

“At first, I thought it was a prank. Until I heard Kayla’s voice in the background, telling her friend and asking her friend or telling her friend that she was going to die,” said Rincon.

First responders tried saving her life, but she would later die at Gulf Coast Hospital that night.

On March 19, Two days after Rincon-Miller’s death, police arrested Stein in connection to her murder.

The police report states that Jessica Stein, the suspect’s mother, saw her son with two friends at their house around 6 p.m., then not again until 10 p.m., about a half hour after the shooting.

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Scene of where Kayla Rincon-Miller died. CREDIT: SWFL UNCENSORED

Those two match the descriptions given by the girls who were with Rincon-Miller at the time.

Leading police to continue searching for clues that will point them to the person who shot and killed her.

Rincon wants to know why someone would kill her daughter and wants justice for her.

“Every day there’s always a question in my head. We just want justice for her now. That’s what she deserves,” said Rincon.

Stein’s next court appearance is scheduled for Monday.

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