Suspect Admits to Firing Gun in Tampa’s Halloween Weekend Mass Shooting

Ybor City, Tampa, Fla. on Oct. 30, 2023. T.J. Muscaro/The Epoch Times

TAMPA—The main street of Ybor City was calm and quiet on Oct. 30. But only hours before, it was filled with screams, sirens, and gunfire during what some shopworkers described as the worst shooting situation they’ve seen.

Around 3 a.m. on Oct. 29, an altercation in the middle of 7th Avenue in Ybor escalated into a gunfight that left two people dead—a 14-year-old identified as Elijah Jaquan Wilson and 20-year-old Harrison Boonstoppel.

It was reported that 16 others, aged 18 to 27, were also taken to the hospital, 15 of whom were treated for gunshot wounds. As of Oct. 30, five of those 15 remain in hospital.

Ybor City is known for its nightlife, with its main drag, 7th Avenue, playing host to nightclubs, entertainment venues, and restaurants. Most locations close at 2 a.m.

Employees and shopkeepers, not all of whom were present during the incident, commented that the shooting was the most extreme they'd seen and heard of happening on their street.

One woman told The Epoch Times it was the worst situation she'd seen in 13 years.

While late-night altercations are common, she said—and people have died from other accidents such as falling to the ground in the wrong way during a fight—shootings are rare.

Questions among concerned Tampa residents continue to focus on why and how a 14-year-old was out so late, as establishments check IDs at the door and a state curfew is in effect for all minors.

Tampa’s police department had 50 police officers in the area at that time.

Ybor shooting suspect Tyrell Phillips after being arrested by Tampa Police on Oct. 29, 2023. Courtesy of Tampa Police

Videos taken by bystanders and posted to social media show at least one person drawing a gun and shooting, and those videos show multiple people with guns in their hands. It is still unclear if the situation had more than one active shooter.

One suspect was arrested: 22-year-old Tyrell Phillips.

But the Tampa Police Department announced on the morning of Oct. 31 that its detectives believe that, based on the current evidence collected, two additional suspects appeared to fire several gunshots.

The police have partnered with the FBI to launch a new web-based portal that helps members of the public submit videos, pictures, and text messages that can assist in the investigation.

“We are truly grateful for the support of our community and all the tips they have provided investigators so far," said Chief Lee Bercaw in a press release.

“We encourage anyone who may have information to go to fbi.gov/tampashooting and submit any photos or videos that could aid in the investigation. Even if you are not sure if the tip will be helpful, it may be just the evidence our detectives need.”

Mr. Phillips first appeared in court on Oct. 30, charged with second-degree murder.

According to Florida circuit court documents, Mr. Phillips turned himself over to the police on-site, admitting he fired his weapon during the incident.

He was found to have a loaded Glock 29 10mm handgun.

The documents state that Mr. Phillips was in Ybor that night with friends when he saw a former female schoolmate. He said he waved to her but was then approached by several men he described as being aggressive-looking, one of which, he suspected, was carrying a firearm.

In his statement, Mr. Phillips admitted to firing two rounds at no particular target, arguing he feared for his safety, and fled the scene on foot.

However, the court noted that the video footage of the shooting was inconsistent with the defendant’s account and showed that he fired his gun three times, resulting in one of the two deaths.

That victim died at the scene and was found to have a loaded gun still in its holster.

The court papers said Mr. Phillips admitted the victim never reached to draw a weapon before the shooting began.

Those three shots were the first of many that could be heard in the video footage.

Mr. Phillips was denied bail and has a pretrial hearing set for Nov. 2.

7th Avenue, Ybor City, Tampa, Fla., on Oct. 30; the day after a mass shooting took place. T.J. Muscaro/The Epoch Times

Florida governor Ron DeSantis spoke out briefly on the incident on Oct. 29, saying: “Following last night’s shooting in Ybor City, we’ve been in constant contact with @fdlepio [Florida Department of Law Enforcement] and we are offering all available resources to local law enforcement to respond to this terrible situation.”

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, the former Chief of Police, also released a statement, calling it “a senseless loss of life by those who choose to settle a dispute with firearms.”

“The Tampa Police Department had 50 officers deployed in the area at the time, so this is not a law enforcement issue,” she said on X.

“Bad decisions made in a split second and the proliferation of readily available guns are responsible for these almost daily incidents. We can affect one-half of this equation.”

Weekend of Mass Shootings

The incident in Ybor City was one of 12 mass shootings reported across the United States between Oct. 27 and Oct. 29 that took the lives of at least 11 people and left 76 injured.

A fistfight between two men at a block party in Texarkana, Texas, turned deadly shortly after 9 p.m. (CT). Local police reported that at least two men pulled out their rifles and started shooting, after which six people aged 18 to 31 were shot, three of whom died.

In Indianapolis, police reported a midnight shooting on Oct. 29 left one teenage girl dead and nine other people aged 16 to 21 injured.

On the West Side of Chicago, a man reportedly opened fire on a crowd around 5 a.m. that same day, shooting 15 people aged 26 to 53 and critically injuring two of them. Police reported that a man found with a handgun fleeing the scene on foot was taken into custody.

With Halloween falling on a Tuesday this year, many people moved their celebrations to the preceding weekend.