Page 31 - Florida Sentinel 1-8-21

Crime
5 Injured In Shooting At Gas Station
The shooting Monday night that left five people injured took place at the Citgo Gas Station, 1225 S. 78th Street.
Man Charged With Burglary Of Businesses
Police are investigating a shooting that took place Mon- day night in Clair Mel. The shooting left five people hurt by the gunfire.
According to the Hillsbor- ough County Sheriff’s Office, the shooting took place at the Citgo Gas Station, 1225 S. 78th Street. Police said a large group had gathered outside the business.
At some point a verbal al- tercation took place. As the al- tercation continued, one person is said to have dis- played a firearm and shot one
of the victims. At that point, gunfire was returned and four other people, including the in- dividual who fired the first shot, were injured. All five people were transported to local hospitals, where they were treated for their injuries. Two of the victims were hospi- talized. None of the victims have been identified.
Detectives are continuing their investigation. Detectives said they have spoken with all individuals involved, but no arrests had been made as of press time.
Detectives with the Hills- borough County Sheriff’s Of- fice have arrested a suspect linked to several burglaries of businesses. The burglaries took place several weeks ago.
According to police, on
December 19, 2020, Joseph Williams, 39, is alleged to have used a piece of concrete to break the glass and gain entry into the Taste of China restaurant, 8476 Sheldon Road in Town ‘N’ Coun- try. Once inside, he targeted the cash register.
Police said similar burgla- ries were later committed at the Keystone Cafe, 8741 Gunn Highway, Bahama Bucks, 8527 Gunn Highway, the New China restaurant, 17625 Gunn Highway, and Kang Gardens, 12221 W.Linebaugh Avenue.
Entertainment
JOSEPH WILLIAMS
In each burglary, the sus- pect broke the front glass and attempted to steal money from the register.
With the help of surveil- lance video, Williams was identified as a suspect in the Taste of China burglary and a possible suspect in the addi- tional burglaries.
On January 2, detectives
obtained an arrest warrant for Williams for a charge of burglary of an unoccupied structure in relation to the Taste of China burglary.
On Monday, January 4, Williams was located driv- ing in the same red Chevy Colorado seen on surveil- lance video at the scene of one of the business burglary. With the assistance of the Pasco Sheriff’s Office, Williams was arrested. De- tectives believe Williams could also be linked to simi- lar business burglaries in Pasco and Hernando Coun- ties. An investigation is on- going.
Williams was charged with burglary of an unoccu- pied structure and other drug-related charges.
Crime Stoppers
Bill Cosby Thanks Jesse Jackson For Calling For His Release From Prison Due To COVID-19 Threat
Offering Reward For
Counterfeit Suspect
Bill Cosby is expressing gratitude to Rev. Jesse Jackson, who called for Cosby's release from prison amid the coronavirus pan- demic in a new interview.
Speaking to The Philadel- phia Tribune in an article published Tuesday, Jackson asked for the state of Penn- sylvania to reexamine the risks that Cosby faces while in state prison as COVID-19 continues to spread.
"He's 84 and blind. Who's he going to hurt? He should be home and free and away from all of those germs," Jackson said, adding that the "government needs to do something" and that he thought Cosby "shouldn't still be in prison."
Cosby was convicted in April 2018 on three counts of aggravated sexual assault of
His representative An- drew Wyatt issued a state- ment to USA TODAY on Wednesday on behalf of the comedian and his wife Camille Cosby, thanking Jackson "for his coura- geousness and his support."
"Mr. & Mrs. Cosby are forever grateful to Rev- erend Jackson and his family because he has been working feverishly to get the State of PA to release Mr. Cosby, since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, back in April," the statement read.
Jackson noted to The Tribune that he has known Cosby for more than 50 years and has seen the come- dian help "so many, many people," citing donations Bill and Camille Cosby have given to HBCUs and other organizations.
Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for a fraud suspect. The suspect has been identi- fied as Gregory Caliz.
According to police, be- tween November 2016 and August 2019, Caliz deposited counterfeit checks into accounts in the Tampa Bay area then withdrew the money by using debit cards and identification of another person.
He is currently wanted on a federal indictment for 7 counts of bank fraud and 2 counts of aggravated identity theft stemming from a joint investigation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.
Caliz has ties to Hillsbor- ough and Pasco Counties and may still be in the area.
Crime Stoppers of Tampa
GREGORY CALIZ
Bay is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information that leads to the location and ar- rest of Gregory Caliz for this outstanding warrant.
Anyone with any informa- tion regarding case and who wants to be eligible for a cash reward is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-873-TIPS (8477), re- port anonymously online at www.crimestopperstb.com.
In this 2004 file photo, Bill Cosby and Jesse Jackson attend an annual conference for civil rights organization Rainbow Push Coalition.
his former friend, Andrea Constand, in 2004, and is serving a three-to-10-year sentence in a Pennsylvania state prison.
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