Tampa Police Make Arrest In 4 Seminole Heights Slayings

TAMPA, FL - A 24-year-old man has been arrested in the four shooting deaths in Seminole Heights, Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan announced late Tuesday night. Howell Emanuel "Trai" Donaldson III has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder, police said.

Donaldson, a McDonald's employee, was taken to police headquarters Tuesday afternoon for questioning regarding the shootings, police said. At about 2:45 p.m., a police officer doing paperwork at a McDonald's at E 13th Avenue in Ybor City was approached by the restaurant's manager about a gun that had been left behind by Donaldson. Donaldson had asked the manager to hold a bag while he walked to Amscot to get a payday loan. He told a co-worker he planned on leaving the state. The manager looked in the bag and saw a handgun.

After learning about the weapon, the police officer called for detectives and additional backup. When Donaldson returned, police took him to headquarters for questioning. They also seized the handgun.

Gail Rogers, a McDonald’s co-worker, said Donaldson had worked at the restaurant for about two months and drove a red car. (Officers searched a red Ford Mustang in the McDonald's parking lot.) Rogers also said she suggested to the manager that the police officer in the restaurant be alerted to the handgun's discovery. Donaldson was a crew chief at McDonald’s, according to jail records.

At a Wednesday morning press conference held in the Seminole Heights neighborhood, Dugan said, "I assure you this is the man who did this."

During several hours of interviews with police, Dugan said Donaldson was "friendly and nice" to officers and seemed "laid back." The police chief said Donaldson admitted to owning the gun, but provided no motive. He did not confess to the slayings.

Dugan added: "The gun was used in all four murders."

Dugan said police don't know why Donaldson gave the bag to the manager to hold for him. "I don't think he wanted to get caught," Dugan said. "He did not tell us why he was doing this."

So far, police have not found Donaldson's connection to the Seminole Heights neighborhood. "We don't know why he picked Southeast Seminole Heights," Dugan said.

Dugan praised the woman who came forward at the McDonald's to tell the officer about the gun. He did not identify her, but a co-worker said the woman was the restaurant manager.

"For whatever reason, we got a break," Dugan said during Tuesday night's press conference. "Somebody stepped up and did the right thing and that was what we needed. We had said all along that no tip is too small, and somebody stepped forward and gave us what we needed."

According to an arrest report, after officers approached him in the McDonald's parking lot, Donaldson gave police permission to search his car and his phone, and to examine his gun.

Donaldson said he purchased the Glock firearm and ammunition in September from Shooter’s World on East Fletcher Avenue, the arrest report noted. He said he was the only one with control of the firearm since its purchase.

FDLE officials who examined the gun said casings found at the scene of the first three murders were fired from the Glock. The casings from the fourth shooting scene were previously identified as having been fired from the same gun as the first three murders. The Glock was loaded with a magazine containing five unfired rounds of SIG brand Smith and Wesson .40 caliber ammunition, the arrest report said.

Investigators later discovered Donaldson had purchased the gun on Oct. 3 then picked it up on Oct. 7. The first shooting death occurred two days later. He also bought a 20-round box of SIG brand Smith and Wesson ammunition Oct. 7, the arrest report said. Police found two fired SIG brand Smith and Wesson .40 caliber cartridge casings at the scene of Benjamin Mitchell’s murder Oct. 9.

Donaldson told police he was unfamiliar with the Seminole Heights neighborhood and didn’t have any association with anyone in the area. When police showed Donaldson evidence that indicated his ties to the shootings, Donaldson requested an attorney. He is being held in jail without bond.

Investigators who searched Donaldson’s cell phone found recorded times and activities that correspond with when the first three murders happened.

According to the arrest report, the three dates and times were Oct. 9 between 8:47 and 9:02 p.m, Oct. 11 between 8:18 and 8:42 p.m. and Oct. 19 between 7:51 and 7:58 p.m.

Call records showed that within minutes of the first three murders, Donaldson’s cell phone was geographically associated with cell towers in the area.

Officers searching Donaldson’s car found clothing similar to clothes worn by the suspect in surveillance video taken the night of the first murder. The arrest report notes officers also found a possible blood stain on the clothing.

Donaldson, who goes by Trai, graduated from Alonso High School in 2011 and played guard on the varsity basketball team. His social media accounts say he attended St. John’s University in Queens, the New York Daily News reported. His bio from the St. John’s Red Storm men’s basketball page has been removed. Donaldson said in one of his profiles that he goes by Trai because he is third generation.

Donaldson was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, according to his Facebook page. The page does not appear to have been updated since 2015, when Donaldson says he graduated from St. John’s, heavy.com reported. On Facebook, Donaldson says he received a degree in computer science with a minor in sports management. At that time, he worked at a Finish Line shoe store.

Donaldson also worked for the New York Mets at CitiField and listed his job title as “Guest Experience Host,” a role in which he scanned tickets for all members entering the field and private VIP clubs. Donaldson also worked as a student marketing assistant for the school, a conference services facilities assistant and a campus recreation student worker. In February 2015, he worked at an event for the NBA. Between February 2013 and May 2015, according to heavy.com, he worked at an Adidas store in New York City.

According to information on his LinkedIn page, Donaldson worked as a Classroom Support Specialist at the Ultimate Medical Academy in Clearwater until May 2017.

Donaldson is the son of Rosita and Howell Donaldson II. The couple have three children, two sons and a daughter, according to posts on Rosita Donaldson’s Facebook page.

The Donaldson family runs the Shear Excellence Hair Academy in Tampa. Their website lists Rosita Donaldson as the “President/CFO/Director/Instructor” and her husband, Howell Donaldson II, as the “Vice President/Operational Manager/Student Services.” The business is described as being “committed to excellence in Cosmetology, Nail Technology, and Restricted Barber."

Trai Donaldson worked as an assistant at the school between May and September 2015.

Dugan said the goal of holding the Tuesday night press conference was to "let the people of Seminole Heights get a good night sleep. It has been 51 days that they have been terrorized in their neighborhood."

Mayor Bob Buckhorn added, "You know, 51 days ago I said this was a struggle between good and evil. Well, tonight goodness has won."

Buckhorn praised the police officers involved in the search for the killer.

"They have been on this case for 51 days," he said. "They put their lives on the sidelines. They put their normal jobs on the sidelines. And they focused on one thing and that was to catch a killer."

He also praised the Seminole Heights residents.

"They had our backs and we had theirs. We could not have done this without their support. Tonight is the beginning of when justice will be served. Then the process will occur when this individual rots in hell.”

On Nov. 14, Ronald Felton, an unemployed construction worker who was on his way to volunteer at a food bank, was gunned down on Nebraska Avenue at about 5 a.m. Police arrived at the shooting scene within minutes, but the suspect escaped. Police say Felton's death is linked to three other killings in the neighborhood last month.

The Seminole Heights neighborhood has been on edge since the three shooting deaths occurred in an 11-day span in October. Police have said they consider all four shootings to be related.

On Oct. 9, the first victim, 22-year-old Benjamin Mitchell, was waiting at the Route 9 bus stop on 15th Street on his way to see his girlfriend when he was shot. The body of Monica Hoffa, 32, was found Oct. 13. Anthony Naiboa, a 20-year-old Middleton High School graduate, was shot and killed Oct. 19 on a sidewalk at N 15th and E. Conover streets.

A waitress at a local IHOP, Hoffa was walking to a friend's home when she was shot. Her body was found in a vacant lot. Naiboa had mistakenly taken the wrong bus to return home from work and was walking to a bus stop on 15th Street when he was shot at about 8 p.m. Oct. 19.

On Wednesday morning, Gov. Rick Scott met with the Tampa police and area law enforcement agencies at the police department to thank them for their efforts.

"These officers worked tirelessly," Scott said. "They worked around the clock. They didn't get their Thanksgiving, but they did it all because they care about keeping people safe."

It has been 51 days since the first shooting and two weeks since Felton was shot. During those 51 days, the Seminole Heights area has been saturated with law enforcement officers searching for the killer. Earlier this month, Scott directed the Florida Highway Patrol to deploy additional troopers to the Seminole Heights area.

The FHP troopers were in addition to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's squad of agents assigned to neighborhood canvassing. FDLE also had agents assigned to vet leads and provide analytical assistance. FDLE lab analysts processed numerous items of evidence. FDLE also contributed $10,000 to the Crime Stoppers reward. The reward is now at $110,000.

The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, along with area law enforcement agencies, also assisted in the investigation.

During the investigation, Tampa police released a video of a "person of interest" who later became a suspect in the slayings. The video was taken moments before Felton's shooting on Nov. 14 and police believe that person is also shown in a video taken in the area where the first shooting occurred Oct. 9 . That video can be viewed here.

Police received more than 5,000 tips. Seminole Heights residents were shaken by the random shootings. Residents stopped going for walks alone and school children were escorted to their bus stops by police officers.

Dugan avoided using the term serial killer to describe the suspect, despite police saying all the shootings were random.

Sherry Street, 50, a cook who has lived in the area for seven years, described earlier this month how the shootings had changed the neighborhood.

"Up until recently, I used to accidentally fall asleep with the door unlocked," she said.

Street stopped walking to the store, taking the bus or sitting outside to smoke at night. Her friends would often stop by and hang out on her porch to talk, but "now they're like, 'I'm not coming to see you.'"

Her neighbors also changed their routines.

"At 7 o'clock you can come out this door and you won't hear a sound," she said.

At Wednesday's press conference, Dugan said the capture of a suspect gave him a “feeling of relief” after many sleepless nights. It “hit me this morning that we got the guy,” he added.

It is “times like this that can easily divide a city,” Dugan said. He thanked Buckhorn and the community for their support, and added, “we stuck together.”

Dugan and Buckhorn said the capture of the Seminole Heights serial killer will allow the community to begin the healing process.

“Today, the light shines," Buckhorn said. "The darkness is over."

Images via Tampa Police Department