Throughout October and November, the Seminole Heights neighborhood in Tampa Bay has been the site of a string a late-night and early morning slayings that resulted in door-to-door searches in the blue-collar area. “This is personal. This has got to stop,” Mayor Bob Buckhorn said earlier this month. “We need to catch this killer before we have to notify one more family that one of their loved ones is dead.” After a tense few weeks, police have arrested a suspect they believe is responsible for all four shooting deaths.
Tampa police arrested 24-year-old Howell Emanuel Donaldson III Tuesday at the McDonald’s he works at — after Donaldson handed his fellow employee a McDonald’s bag with a loaded pistol inside while announcing his intention to leave the state. The witness quickly turned the gun over to a police officer, who detained Donaldson for questioning. While he was charged with four counts of first-degree murder, police have yet to release information regarding Donaldson’s connection to the Seminole Heights neighborhood or a possible motive for the shootings.
“Tonight is the beginning of when justice will be served,” Mayor Buckhorn said at a press conference announcing the arrests. “And then the process will occur, when this individual rots in hell. Tonight, we’re bringing someone to justice who doesn’t deserve the right to walk amongst us,” he said.
(Via WFTV 9 in Tampa)