Community Corner

Tampa Bay News Of The Week: Unsolved Shooting Deaths; Operation Nailed; Human Trafficking; Explosives Found

Top posts from the week on Tampa Bay Patches, including the 3 unsolved homicides in a Seminole Heights neighborhood.

TAMPA, FL - Here are some of the week's top headlines on Tampa Bay Patches:

Police continue to investigate three shooting deaths in a Seminole Heights neighborhood -- a neighborhood that Acting Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan says is being terrorized. A shooting death Thursday night, the third in the same neighborhood in the last 11 days, is linked to the other homicides, police said. The latest victim was in the neighborhood because he took the wrong bus on his way home from work. "He should not have been in this neighborhood," the police chief said. Seminole Heights Neighborhood On Edge.


Twenty unlicensed contractors were arrested on 58 criminal charges as part of the multi-agency “Operation Nailed.” The two-month operation targeted unlicensed contractors who are “scamming innocent citizens and doing shoddy work or no work at all after receiving advance payment,” Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said. The investigation is ongoing and charges involve grand theft, unlicensed contracting and workers’ compensation fraud. ‘Operation Nailed’: 20 Unlicensed Contractors Arrested In Multi-Agency Investigation

Pharmacists, a lawyer and even a sheriff’s department sergeant were among 277 suspects arrested in an undercover operation focusing on human trafficking and online prostitution. The undercover operation took place at two undisclosed locations in Polk County, beginning on Tuesday, Oct. 10 through Monday, Oct. 16. The investigation called “Operation No Tricks, No Treats” also nabbed two sex offenders and two men who were attempting to have sex with minors, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said. Human Trafficking Sting In Polk County Nets 277 Arrests: Sheriff

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What began as a child-porn investigation of a Dunedin man took a jarring twist when investigators discovered in a locked bedroom closet of the 24-year-old an arsenal of weapons, homemade destructive devices and aerial maps of Tampa schools and a water treatment plant in Hillsborough County, according to officials. Also reportedly discovered in the bedroom, deputies said, were journals, notes on explosive-making and a handwritten letter that read: "The daughters come, and I am ready. I have fed on my hatred for centuries. My fury at those who imprisoned me shall be vast and without mercy. I shall have my bloody revenge, and then the WORLD WILL BURN BURN." Explosives, Weapons, Aerial Maps Hidden In Closet: Dunedin 'Lone Wolf' Arrested


A 54-year-old Hudson woman claims she hurt her back while, deputies say, she was stealing cement blocks from a Port Richey home, according to a Pasco County Sheriff’s Office arrest report. Now, she is threatening to sue the homeower. The blocks cost about $10 each or a total of $420, the homeowner said. The homeowner said he arrived home to see a woman taking the blocks that were part of a remodeling project. The blocks were stored about 4 feet from the roadway in the homeowner's front yard. Pasco Deputies Say Woman Threatened To Sue After Hurting Her Back While Stealing Cement Blocks

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Want to live like an NFL coach? This house might be for you. Former Buccaneers coach Lovie Smith lived in this six-bedroom, six-bath home on about 13 acres in the Tampa Palms community while coaching in Tampa Bay. 'WOW' House: Former Bucs Coach Lovie Smith Selling Tampa Estate For $4.8 Million

A Bradenton woman allegedly stabbed to death her female neighbor then asked for the knife back the next morning, according to the Bradenton Police Department. The neighbor was arrested by officers on suspicion of the second-degree murder of neighbor Zelma Huddleston at her home on the 2300 block of 3rd Avenue in Bradenton, officials said. Bradenton Woman Stabbed To Death By Neighbor: Police

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