Staff report
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Xzavier Taylor Hawkins, 20, has been charged with attempted homicide in a July 2 incident; Kelvin Baker, 18, who was originally charged with attempted homicide in that incident, is no longer facing a homicide charge but has been charged with grand theft of a firearm.
At about 3:30 a.m. on June 27, a witness noticed a car with open doors in the Cedar Grove area and then reportedly saw Baker and an unidentified person loitering nearby. Gainesville Police Department officers determined that two cars were burglarized, and a firearm was stolen from each car, along with holsters; the stolen firearms were a black Glock 19 and a tan Smith & Wesson M&P Shield.
At about 10:45 p.m. on July 2, a male was shot by someone on the porch of a residence a block away from the vehicle burglary, and four 9mm shell casings were recovered from the porch.
During the investigation of that shooting, a detective reviewed surveillance cameras and saw Baker with the Smith & Wesson on multiple nights, beginning on the weekend after the vehicle burglary and through the night of the shooting. A second person could be seen with a firearm that appeared to be a black Glock 19.
Three witnesses told officers that Baker had a “peanut-butter-colored” firearm on July 2, and they also saw Baker and another male passing a black Glock back and forth.
The shooting victim said he was riding his bike northbound on NE 24th Street, heading home from work, and when he passed by Baker’s residence, he heard someone call his nickname from the front door of the home next to Baker’s. The victim said Baker was sitting on the neighbor’s porch and had called out to him. He said he got off the bike and was walking the bike up to the porch but was still in the roadway when he saw Baker raise his arm; he said he heard and felt a gunshot at that moment, then dropped his bike and fled southbound on NE 24th Street while calling 911.
Baker was arrested and charged with attempted homicide, and he reportedly said he did not have a firearm and had not had a firearm in the house since his brother was arrested.
A search warrant for Baker’s home was obtained, and officers reportedly found a box of ammunition in Baker’s bedroom that matched the shell casings on the neighbor’s property. One live round was reportedly in the box, and one was on the floor; a full box of 9mm ammunition (the same brand as the shell casings) was reportedly found on the front porch of Baker’s home. A small pistol holster was reportedly found in a clothing hamper in Baker’s room, and a second small pistol holster was reportedly found on the porch, along with a small amount of burnt marijuana. The holsters were identified by the theft victim as those that were stolen from his vehicles.
A GPD K-9 team searched for a firearm, and the K-9 alerted to an old pickup truck next to Baker’s home; a 9mm Smith & Wesson pistol was reportedly found under the front of the truck. A juvenile in Baker’s home reportedly said Baker had been outside at the time of the shooting and had to be let in because the door was locked.
Post Miranda at the jail, Baker reportedly denied stealing the firearm but said someone else gave it to him to “hold.” He said he’d heard that the victim was offering a reward for the stolen firearm and wanted to return the firearm for the reward, which, the detective noted, confirmed that he knew the gun was stolen. Baker reportedly said the holster on the porch belonged to the victim, but he said the holster in the laundry basket did not belong to the victim. He reportedly admitted tossing the stolen gun under the vehicle while fleeing from the shooting scene.
Hawkins was arrested on July 9 for allegedly forcing a friend to help him flee the scene of the July 2 shooting and was held without bail, pending a motion from the State Attorney’s office to hold him without bail until trial. However, before the hearing could be held, the new charges of attempted second-degree homicide and possession of a firearm by an adjudicated delinquent were filed.
According to the sworn complaint, Hawkins was hanging out with Baker and a witness at Baker’s residence and on the neighbor’s porch on July 9; in surveillance video, Hawkins can reportedly be seen with an object “consistent with a handgun” in the pocket of his hoodie. In a post-Miranda interview after his July 9 arrest, he reportedly said the object was a “rolled-up beanie.” He reportedly said he was on the porch and heard 12 shots but did not see who shot the victim. He said he ran away on foot.
Immediately after the shooting, the victim reportedly said he’d thought Baker shot him because he saw Baker with a gun, but a few days later, he reportedly told a detective that there were other people on the porch, but he could not see them clearly. He also clarified that he saw a gun in Baker’s waistband but never saw it in Baker’s hand.
Two other witnesses, who left before the shooting, reportedly told the detective that Hawkins had a black handgun, which they believed was a Glock, and he brandished it, making them nervous.
Baker reportedly said that Hawkins asked him if the person on the bike was the victim and became agitated when that was verified. Hawkins allegedly fired “numerous” shots at the victim, and Baker said he tried to stop him. Baker reportedly saw the witness running to his car and saw Hawkins follow and get into the witness’s car. Baker reportedly admitted to having a handgun but denied firing it.
The Glock handgun has not been recovered, but the casings found at the scene “had characteristics consistent with being fired from a Glock.”
Baker is now facing a charge of grand theft of a firearm and is currently being held on $250,000 bail, but the bail amount has not yet been changed to reflect the new charge. He has a juvenile conviction in 2025 but no adult criminal convictions
Hawkins has been charged with attempted second-degree homicide and possession of a firearm by an adjudicated delinquent, along with the previous kidnapping charge. He is also facing a charge of tampering with a witness after allegedly asking someone else to make a post on his Instagram account, telling the witness to “stop lying” in an apparent attempt to intimidate the witness from testifying; Hawkins has not yet been booked on that charge. Hawkins has juvenile convictions spanning 2019 to 2021 and one adult misdemeanor conviction (non-violent). Judge Jonathan Ramsey set bail at $350,000.
Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.