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5 Charged In Holdups, Shooting

GEORGE NEWMAN / The Tampa Tribune

An officer walks past a Jeep Grand Cherokee that the suspects were driving during Monday’s chase.

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By GEORGE H. NEWMAN, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 7, 2007

News Channel 8 Video Report

PLANT CITY - A string of armed robberies targeting migrant workers led to a car chase Tuesday that ended with the arrests of five suspects.

Two victims were struck in the head with a gun and one was shot in the thigh during an assault spree against at least six migrant workers, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said.

Two of the suspects were injured when Plant City police officers crashed into the suspects' Jeep Grand Cherokee to end the pursuit Tuesday afternoon near 1316 Alsobrook St.

Arrested were:

•Ricardo Young, 15, 1504 Warren St., who was treated for an ankle injury and released from South Bay Hospital.

•Rodney Young, 17, 810 Warren St. It's not clear whether he is related to Ricardo Young.

•Vintawn Brook, 17, 1101 S. Gibbs St., who was treated for an ankle injury and released from South Bay Hospital.

•Jamal Rice, 18, 1102 Ball St.

•Jamari McFadden, 16, 1016 Emerald Hill Way, Valrico.

Each suspect was charged with four counts of armed robbery and one count of attempted murder, sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.

Motorist Caught In The Middle

Eyewitness Connie Dasher said she was driving home on Alsobrook Street with her 3-month-old granddaughter when she saw the suspects and officers coming straight at her.

"The cops had their lights flashing and their sirens on," Dasher said. "I thought they were going to run over me."

As Dasher pulled off to the right, the suspects' vehicle turned to the north, about 40 feet in front of her car, attempting to drive on a dirt road.

"The cops hit the Jeep from three sides," Dasher said. "Three boys jumped out of the car and ran right past my car. I was scared to death."

Officers started chasing the suspects' Jeep because it matched the description of a vehicle linked to four robberies north and west of Plant City.

The suspects hit a motorist at Mud Lake Road but continued to flee to Alexander Street, where they headed north. With helicopters overhead and deputies close behind, the suspects turned east on Alsobrook where the chase ended.

The victims were all Hispanic, including some working in a strawberry field, Carter said. One victim, located near McGee Road, was shot in the right thigh. He was taken to the hospital with a nonlife-threatening injury.

Migrant Workers Were Prey

Carter said investigators know of at least six migrant workers who were attacked, but they are still conducting interviews. Their names were not released.

The first robbery was reported at 11:29 a.m. at 14718 Sydney Road where four or five victims were robbed, Carter said. The second was at the intersection of Sydney and Sydney-Dover roads, where an undetermined number of victims were robbed at about 12:22 p.m. The shooting at 1206 McGee Road took place at 12:55 p.m.

The fourth robbery was of migrants working in a strawberry field near Old Hopewell and Horton roads. The crime was reported at 2:30 p.m. but deputies are not sure when it occurred, said.

The two people hit over the head with a gun were treated and released, Carter said. Authorities recovered three handguns and cash from the jeep, she said.

Often migrant workers are afraid to report crime to police, said Tirso Moreno of the Farmworker Association of Florida.

Attackers know when the workers get paid and that they often carry cash instead of opening a bank account, Moreno said.

"These robberies, these problems are urgent for our organization," Moreno said. "Along those same lines are the scams and the extortions. Police have to be pay attention to these crimes."

Reporter Chris Echegaray contributed to this report.

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