Police Officer and teens found dead in Florida

A police officer and a young couple he stopped to question have been found dead in an up-market Florida neighbourhood.

Officer Robert German, 31, called for backup after seeing the pair acting suspiciously in the early hours of the morning on Saturday in Windermere, 15 miles from Orlando.

When more police arrivers arrived they heard gunshots and found Mr German fatally wounded, according to Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings.

Alexandria Hollinghurst, a 17-year-old originally from Britain, and her boyfriend Brandon Goode, 18, were found dead nearby.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department have speculated that the teenagers may have taken their own lives after Mr German was shot.

There are reports that suicide notes have been found. 

This claim has been disputed by Alexandria’s family, who say they believe she may have been murdered by Mr Goode.

Mr Demings said: “The two suspects were found very close to where Officer German was shot.

“It appears to be that both suspects, a male and female, died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds.”

Windermere police are conducting an investigation.

The town of Windermere, with its small population of around 3,000, has one of the lowest crime rates in Florida, Mayor Gary Bruhn said.

The mayor said it was the first line-of-duty death in the town’s history.

Mr Bruhn said: “Violent crime is just not something that happens in the town of Windermere.

“So it’s really, really difficult.”