Latin Kings Member Fatally Shot After Opening Fire On U.S. Marshals

RIVERVIEW, FL — Tampa police officers and a Polk County sheriff's deputy, working as members of the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force, came under fire when they attempted to serve a warrant on a wanted, dangerous suspect in Riverview Tuesday.

Just before 10 a.m., the U.S. Marshals Task Force was serving a court-authorized arrest warrant on Don Robert Astor, 39, a known member of the Latin Kings gang with an extensive criminal history including robbery, aggravated assault and rape.

Astor was also the primary suspect in a 2009 homicide out of New York and was wanted for failure to register as a sex offender.

The task force learned that Astor was driving a blue Acura RDX in the Riverview area. They found the car and saw Astor in the passenger seat.

While attempting to make a traffic stop and serve the warrant, the task force members said Astor fired his gun at them. All three task force members shot back, striking Astor, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

"Every day, law enforcement officers protect and serve their local communities," said Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw. "The officers who make up the U.S. Marshals Task Force work in partnership to ensure that the most dangerous criminals cannot harm members of our extended community. They are some of the best-trained heroes this region has, and thankfully they will be able to continue their commitment to protect us from some of the nation's most violent offenders."

"Today's incident, where this suspect brazenly fired shots towards law enforcement officers in a reckless attempt to evade arrest, is a stark reminder that our law enforcement community faces dangers on a daily basis,"said Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister. "We want to make it clear that we will not tolerate violence towards our officers. Our agency as a whole receives the highest level of training in de-escalation but, make no mistake; if you threaten the lives of our community members and our deputies, you will face the consequences."

The two Tampa police officers have been placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure for any officer-involved shooting. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will investigate the shooting.