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'He Was Looking For Trouble'

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By DAVID SOMMER, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 23, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - A couple driving home from a tough day in the landscaping business ended up dodging bullets after encountering an erratic motorist late Thursday afternoon, they told investigators.

Now, a man who had been out on bail on drug charges is behind bars facing charges including attempted murder in the shooting and grand theft of a Glock handgun in a car burglary reported earlier in the day, according to the Pasco County Sheriff's Office.

About a half-dozen witnesses have said they saw Brandon J. Cloud, 23, shoot a gun in the parking lot of the Kangaroo Express gas station on Rowan Road near Main Street at 4:25 p.m. Thursday, sheriff's spokesman Doug Tobin said.

The witnesses include Cloud's brother, who may have been burned by the muzzle flash from one of the shots.

"He was looking for trouble," Lisa Backers said Friday of the shooter. "It was like something you'd see in a movie."

Backers, 42, said she and her boyfriend, John Fredrickson, were headed north on Grand Boulevard with a full pickup and trailer after trimming trees in Holiday when they noticed a gold Lincoln in front of them.

"He was hitting the brakes and hitting the gas and swerving into cars coming the other way and driving like an idiot," Backers said.

After passing through the intersection at Gulf Drive, the Lincoln's driver again stomped on his brakes, causing Backers to hit the horn as her truck and loaded trailer nearly smashed into the Lincoln, she said. Soon after, both vehicles turned down different streets and Backers and Fredrickson thought no more about it.

A short while later, after dropping off the trailer, they saw the gold Lincoln again on Rowan Road, Backers said. The Lincoln's driver did a U-turn and chased them into the Kangaroo Express.

"He cut off traffic. You could hear people skidding when he went over the median," Backers said.

Fredrickson, 42, got out of the truck and asked the Lincoln's driver what his problem was, she said.

"He said, 'I'll give you a problem' and pointed the gun out the window and fired," Backers said. "I thought John was hit, the timing of the gun and he hit the ground," she said. "But he got up and ran toward the store."

That's when the Lincoln drove around the gas pumps, and the driver fired what Beckers counted as a second shot through the passenger's window, she said.
Fredrickson was up all night and didn't fall asleep until after police called to say Cloud was in custody, his girlfriend said. He was still sleeping late Friday afternoon.

"I think it just hit us - what actually happened to us," she said.

A sheriff's detective told them they probably can rest easy because the bondsman who got Cloud out of jail on the drug charges this month may lose money now that his client is charged with additional crimes.

No other bondsmen are likely to want to cover the more than $160,000 in bail that Cloud is now being held on, Backers said she was told.

An incident report by Deputy Phillip Woodruff said that most witnesses saw what Beckers described as the second shot through the passenger's window.
Backers said she, her boyfriend and a third witness all reported two shots. The 911 call that went out over police radio bands on Thursday said two shots were fired.

The Lincoln was seized as evidence after other witnesses led deputies to a home on Cathy Drive in Port Richey, where Cloud and his brother Nicholas were found after a brief standoff, reports state.

Nicholas Cloud, who gave a statement corroborating that of the witnesses, was not charged, according to records.

A Glock was found inside the house with Brandon Cloud's wallet on top of it, the arrest report states.

Brandon Cloud, of 11434 Rohrman Road, Port Richey, is charged with attempted murder, discharging a firearm from a vehicle and grand theft.

A state attorney's investigation, at which prosecutors decide what charges to press in court, is scheduled for next month, reports said.

Reporter David Sommer can be reached at (727) 815-1087 or dsommer@tampatrib.com.

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