Each sustains gunshot to the head
An apparent murder-suicide left two Sarasota residents dead on Tides Circle on Sunday, Feb. 22, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) has reported.
At 10:32 a.m. that day, deputies “responded to a 911 call requesting a welfare check in the 7000 block of Tides Circle,” a news release said. “The call was made by an individual who was concerned for a friend who had called that day making unusual and worrying statements,” the release added.
When deputies arrived, they observed two injured people inside the residence, the release continues. After the deputies entered the home, they discovered Lily Z. Yard, a 27-year-old Black woman, “deceased from an apparent gunshot wound to the head,” the release said. Jordan M. Rouff, 40, who was white, “was still alive with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head,” the release noted. Rouff “was transported to the hospital,” it said, “where he was pronounced deceased shortly after arrival.”
Detectives with the Criminal Investigation Section “found that Rouff and Yard had an on-again off-again relationship and had recently moved in together,” the release explained.
The next-of-kin for both victims have been notified, the release added. “This investigation is ongoing,” the release pointed out. “Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to call the Criminal Investigation Section” at 941-861-4900, the release said, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers by calling 941-366-TIPS (8477) or going online at www.sarasotacrimestoppers.com.
A Sarasota News Leader search of the records maintained by Sarasota County Property Appraiser Bill Furst and his staff found that the apartment complex standing at 7000 Tides Circle is owned by a Milwaukee, Wis., limited liability company, TI Investors of LWR Waterside Apartments LLC. The manager of that company is Towne Realty Inc. of Milwaukee, the Florida Articles of Incorporationshow. Those articles were filed with the Florida Division of Corporations in April 2021, the document says.
The principal address for TI Investors of LWR Waterside Apartments LLC is that of Homes by Towne in Sarasota: 6901 Professional Parkway, Suite 100, the Division of Corporations record notes.
Tides Circle connects to Lakewood Ranch Boulevard; it is east of Interstate 75, a map shows.
The initial Sheriff’s Office advisory about the incident — issued just after noon on Feb. 22 — reported, “This appears to be an isolated domestic incident,” with no threat to the public.