TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Weekend Crime Roundup

ADVERTISEMENT

By LISA A. DAVIS

ldavis@tampatrib.com

Published: October 6, 2008

HOLIDAY - Here was Pasco County detectives' mystery Sunday: How did a 26-year-old man wind up naked, unconscious and bleeding inside a car at a used car lot?

Paramedics responded about 11 a.m. Sunday to a report of an injured man at Sun Toyota Superstore on U.S. 19, south of Moog Road.

Inside a car, they found a man who apparently was bleeding from the back of the head. He told paramedics he didn't know how he got there or what happened.

A helicopter flew the man to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg. The extent of his injuries was not immediately known.

Pasco detectives and forensic experts were at the car lot trying to determine what happened.

"At this point, we don't know if it was something he did to himself or something someone did to him," sheriff's office spokesman Kevin Doll said.

3 Pedestrians Killed In 2 Separate Car Crashes

TAMPA - Three pedestrians were killed in two crashes Saturday night, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The first occurred about 9 p.m. on State Road 60 near Hooters and McDonald's restaurants.

Esther Smith-Thomas, 76, was driving east on S.R. 60 when she hit two men crossing the street.

One man died at the scene, and the other died at Tampa General Hospital. Authorities were notifying family members before releasing names.

Smith-Thomas and her passenger, Teresa Thomas-Lemmond, were not injured. The women are from Laurinburg, N.C.

The second crash was about 10 p.m. on U.S. 19, north of Hudson Avenue, in Pasco County.

Donald Willis, 28, of Odessa, was driving south on U.S. 19 when he struck a man crossing the road.

The man died at Bayfront Medical Center about 90 minutes later. Authorities were still trying to identify the victim Sunday.

Neither Willis nor his 22-year-old female passenger was injured.

No charges were filed in either crash.

Neil Johnson

Man Thought Gun Was Not Loaded, Arrest Report Says

TAMPA - Plant City police arrested a man on a manslaughter charge early Sunday morning in connection to the shooting death of a 17-year-old girl Saturday night.

Authorities arrested Thomas Greico, 20, in the shooting death of Brooke McDonald at a party at their apartment about 9:30 p.m. Saturday.

Greico pointed a .44-caliber revolver at McDonald's head and pulled the trigger, according to an arrest affidavit. He thought the gun was not loaded, the report said.

Another man, Jon Hosmer, 21, of Plant City, was charged with tampering with evidence.

Greico is being held without bail at the Orient Road Jail. Hosmer is being held on $4,000 bail.

George H. Newman

Man Shot In Head; Police Say Drug Deal Went Bad

TAMPA - A drug deal that went bad Saturday night has left a Tampa man in critical condition and a Valrico man in jail, authorities say.

Troy Absher went to buy drugs at the Valrico home of Nathan Edward McReynolds, authorities said. The two got into an argument, and McReynolds apparently shot Absher in the head, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said. Absher, 36, was taken to Tampa General Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition Sunday.

Authorities found McReynolds at 4:45 a.m. Sunday at the Seminole Motel. They charged him with attempted first-degree murder with a firearm.

McReynolds, 36, is being held without bail at Orient Road Jail.

Ray Reyes

5 Men Arrested In Nebraska Prostitution Sting

TAMPA - A police sting operation resulted in four men being arrested on charges of soliciting prostitution along Nebraska Avenue.

Police said the men approached an undercover officer and offered various amounts of money for a variety of sexual acts.

The solicitations took place at 6408 N. Nebraska Ave. between about 9:30 p.m. Saturday and 1:30 a.m. Sunday, police said.

Those charged were: Oscar Topia, 24, of Tampa; Nathan Snowden, 22, of Virginia; James Lovett, 36, no listed address; Mark Hollcroft, 50, of Sarasota.

Police arrested a fifth man after he asked an undercover officer to raise her shirt to prove she was not a police officer, reports said.

Gary Zavaleta, 47, of Tampa, was charged with an unlawful act as a precursor to prostitution.

All of the men face misdemeanor charges.

Neil Johnson

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT