Double Homicide: 1 Victim Identified

BRADENTON, FL — The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the Saturday morning deaths of two males in a home on Harvard Avenue.

According to the agency, a 25-year-old woman returned to the home in the 1100 block of Harvard Avenue early Saturday morning and was accosted by several people while trying to get inside.

Get the Bradenton Patch newsletter and alerts in your inbox.

“The female was forced into a bedroom,” an email from the agency said. “While in the bedroom, the female heard yelling and then gunshots.”

The woman was able to escape the home and notify the sheriff’s office.

Two males were found deceased in the home when the sheriff's office arrived, the email said. One of the men has been identified as Rodney Williams, 23, of Tampa. The second victim is a 28-year-old from Jacksonville. Deputies are withholding the man's name until next of kin is notified.

"Detectives believe Williams arrived at the residence shortly after the female returned home," a Saturday evening email from the agency stated. "Williams was with the boyfriend of the female and possibly one other subject." Deputies say Williams and those he was with encountered the suspects and an exchange of gunfire occurred.

Williams and the man from Jacksonville were killed inside the home.

Investigators are also working to determine if a body found in Sarasota Saturday morning has a connection the case. The person was found in the area of Bahia Vista and Yale in Sarasota. Police have identified the man killed as Andre S. Bryant, 31.

Suspect information has not been released. Deputies are asking for anyone with information about the deaths to contact them at 941-747-3011 or Crime Stoppers at 1-866-634-TIPS.

Keep up with what’s happening by following Bradenton Patch on Facebook.

Image via Shutterstock