A man was arrested this week in the 2020 killing of Dexter Rentz Jr., a rising Ocoee High School football player gunned down in a drive-by shooting, the Orlando Police Department announced.
Christopher Burke, 24, faces charges of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit second-degree murder after his arrest by OPD on Wednesday. April 25 marks the fourth anniversary of Rentz’s fatal shooting in the Carver Shores neighborhood. Police reported three other victims survived the shooting.
No other details about Burke’s arrest or his involvement in the shooting were released and court filings did not describe how investigators linked him to the killing. The night of the shooting, OPD detained but later released a person seen driving away from the scene. Police determined that person was not involved.
Burke is in the Orange County Jail without bond.
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Before Rentz was killed he was a star player of Ocoee High’s football program, a talented cornerback/slot receiver who along with a teammate signed to play for the University of Louisville. At the time, Louisville football coach Scott Satterfield said he was “deeply saddened” at the news of Rentz’s death and offered condolences to his family.
“We are deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Dexter Rentz. He was a great young man who had a contagious personality, and was able to light up a room with his smile,” Satterfield said. “He was a great kid to be around and he will be missed.”
Burke has a history of arrests prior to being accused of killing Rentz. In January 2023, he and his brother were accused of killing a man after an armed robbery. Those charges were dropped after prosecutors said they could not prove their case against them, according to court records. He currently faces felony gun charges after an unrelated arrest in July.
For his most recent arrest, he is scheduled to be arraigned April 4.
