Does Tampa Have A Serial Killer? Police Unsure After 3 Shooting Deaths

TAMPA, FL - Seminole Heights residents held a vigil Sunday night to honor the three victims killed in their neighborhood, an area terrorized by a gunman in recent weeks. Residents walked silently with candles and were joined by Casimar Naiboa, the father of the most recent victim, Anthony Naiboa. He stopped at the spot where his son was killed and began praying. "It was right here," he said. "Yet, they killed him just for nothing, just for fun like he was nothing, not a human life, he was nothing."

Though some news outlets have described the shootings as the work of a serial killer, interim Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan has not used that term. Police have released little information regarding leads or specifics as to why they believe the shootings are linked. The victims do not appear to have known one another, police say. No motive has been found, and the shootings appear to be random. The FBI is now assisting in the investigation.

The one bit of evidence police have released is a surveillance video of a thin person wearing a hood walking along a neighborhood street at the time and in the area of the first shooting on Oct. 9. The person, who appears to be a man, has not been called a suspect, but police have said they want to speak with him. The video can be viewed here.

Prior to Naiboa, 22-year-old Benjamin Edward Mitchell and 32-year-old Monica Hoffa were found shot to death. The three shootings occurred within a mile of each other. Police have said the shootings are linked by proximity and circumstances.

Last week, Dugan had a message for the suspect: "Enough is enough," he said. "You have severely affected some families."

Casimar Naiboa also had a message Sunday night: "We won’t be afraid," he said. "We are standing right here. We are not scared of them."

Also See: RAW: Vigil For Three Dead In Tampa Neighborhood

A community meeting will be held in Seminole Heights on Monday night to discuss the shooting deaths that occurred within an 11-day period. The meeting will be held at the Edison Elementary School auditorium, 1607 E. Curtis St. The meeting will start at 6:30 p.m. with Mayor Bob Buckhorn and Dugan attending.

On Monday, Buckhorn called the search for the gunman "good versus evil. We are hunters of men at this point." The mayor said he had sent city crews to the neighborhood to cut overhanging brush "so there won't be places to hide." He said the city was working with TECO to replace street lights. "We've got to get this person off the streets," he said. "We will do everything we can to return sanity and safety back to Seminole Heights."

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Dugan said police are getting tips in the investigation, but on Monday morning added: "We don't know a whole lot" at this point. He said police don't know if one person is responsible for all three shootings. "It could be the work of a couple of people," he said.

Police have been canvassing the neighborhood on a nightly basis looking for clues. While patrolling the area Thursday night, police heard gunshots and found the body of the third victim, Naiboa, a 20-year-old Middleton High School graduate who was shot and killed on a sidewalk at N 15th and E. Conover streets.

Before the body had been identified, detectives canvassing the neighborhood had learned that Naiboa's parents were concerned that he had not come home yet. Naiboa, who is autistic, had taken a city bus and was expected home by that time.

But Dugan said Naiboa took the wrong bus home from work. "He should not have been in this neighborhood," the police chief said. Naiboa was walking to another bus stop when he was shot.

Before the fatal shooting of Naiboa, police had already confirmed that the shooting deaths of Mitchell and Hoffa were related.

On Oct. 9, Mitchell was shot and killed about 9 p.m. while waiting at a bus stop near N. 15th Street and E. Frierson Avenue. It appears that he was alone. The shooting of Naiboa occurred a few hundred feet from Mitchell's homicide.

Hoffa was shot and killed in the 1000 block of E. New Orleans Avenue. Her body was found early Friday, Oct. 13.

Dugan said Mitchell has no criminal background. "He's a good person who comes from a good family and he was just an innocent victim,” he said.

He described Hoffa as having "some challenges in her life," but added that she was another innocent victim.

Crime Stoppers and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have teamed up to raise the reward in the case to $25,000. Anyone with any information regarding the identity of the suspect or suspects and who wants to be eligible for a cash reward is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-873-8477 (TIPS), report anonymously online at www.crimestopperstb.com or send a mobile tip using the P3 Tips Mobile application.

Crime Stoppers must be contacted first in order to be eligible for a cash reward. ATF is offering a reward of up to $20,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the unknown suspect or suspects involved in the homicide cases. The total cash reward of up to $25,000 may be split if multiple suspects are identified and arrested.

Tampa’s bus system, HART, announced that a bus route in the area where the three shootings occurred has been changed. The transit agency said on its Facebook page that it was rerouting Route 9 “in light of recent events.” The announcement says Route 9 will be detoured via 22nd Street from Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to Hillsborough Avenue from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m. The detour will remove the route from 15 Street where two of the shootings occurred.

"We’ve been actively working with the Tampa Police Department to ensure the safety of our employees and customers," HART said in the announcement.

Police also are urging residents in the Seminole Heights area to be vigilant and follow some basic safety tips.
Don't walk alone at night. If you must be out walking after dark, arrange to have a friend join you. Turn on outdoor lights, such as front porch lights. Tampa police can provide light bulbs if necessary. Report any suspicious activity to police at 813-231-6130.

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