Page 32 - Florida Sentinel 1-22-21

Crime
The fatal shooting took place at the Cypress Trace Apart- ments in Brandon early Wednesday morning.
Police Investigate Early Morning Fatal Shooting
Serial Stalker Who Mailed Dead Animal Gets 4 Years
Detectives are currently investigating an early morn- ing shooting that left one person dead. The shooting took place at the Cypress Trace Apartments in Bran- don.
According to the Hillsbor- ough County Sheriff’s Office, a 9-1-1 report of shots being fired was received at approx- imately 6:30 a.m., Wednes- day. Upon arriving at 812 Providence Trace Circle, deputies located an individ- ual who was suffering from upper body trauma. The per- son was transported to Bran-
don Regional Hospital, where he or she passed away. Detectives have not re- leased any information per- taining to the identity of the
victim.
The investigation is con-
tinuing and no additional in- formation was available at press time.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office at (813) 247-8200, or Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay at 1- 800-873-TIPS, or online at www.crimestopperstb.com.
Last week, a U. S. District judge sentenced an Indi- anapolis man to 4 years and 10 months in federal prison. He pleaded guilty to making threats and mailing a dead animal using the U. S. Mail.
The court also ordered 57-year-old Romney Christopher Ellis, of Indi- anapolis, not to have contact with any of the victims asso- ciated with the case. Ellis had pleaded guilty on April 23, 2020.
According to court docu- ments, for at least four years, Ellis engaged in a campaign of harassment against a vic- tim residing in Hillsborough County.
Between 2012 and 2018, a Hillsborough County judge issued multiple domestic vi- olence injunctions against Ellis on the victim’s behalf. Ellis repeatedly violated the orders, including by stalking and threatening the victim, and, in 2013, was convicted of aggravated stalking.
ROMNEY ELLIS
In 2019, Ellis continued
his harassment campaign against the victim through text messages, photographs, and videos.
His communications in- volved threats of violence, in- cluding messages indicating that he intended to travel from Indiana to Florida, and planned to decapitate and set the victim on fire. Ellis rou- tinely made racially and sex- ually charged statements in the text messages, including sending sexually explicit im-
ages of himself to the victim. Ellis also used the U. S. Mail to harass the victim and victim’s family and friends. One on occasion, he mailed a package to the victim’s home containing a dead rat and
black rose.
In February 2020, law
enforcement executed a search warrant at Ellis’s home in Indianapolis and re- covered a handwritten note containing the names and addresses of the victim and the victim’s family and friends.
The investigation also re- vealed that Ellis had a his- tory of repeatedly stalking and victimizing people throughout his life. Court documents showed that since as early as 1993 and continu- ing through Ellis’s date of arrest in March 2020, 14 in- dividuals had sought and ob- tained protective orders against Ellis, based on his harassment, stalking, threats, and acts of violence.
Deputy Charged With Making Written Threats Linked To Capitol Riot
Grady Judd, Sheriff of Polk County, arrested one of his deputies after being made aware of written threats. The investigation began after the recipient of those texts were reported on January 8th. The comments were made on January 6, 2020.
According to a press re- lease, Deputy Peter He- neen made the threats while texting with another deputy. That deputy reported the in- cident to his supervisor.
Sheriff Judd said the deputy who reported the in- cident is not in trouble and considered a hero.
In screen shots of the comments Heneen made included one that stated, “Need to make the streets of D.C. run red with the blood of the tyrants.”
Another comment stated, “Should have drug those tyrants into the streets and executed them.”
Heneen is alleged to
DEPUTY PETER HENEEN
have also said, “I’ll f—— kill them all.” “I have my sh— next to my bed ready to go.”
The other deputy said, “And you are giving your plans on a traceable app on
your phone?”
Heneen reportedly re-
sponded, “Yup, they are lis- tening. Come get me!”
Heneen was charged with written threats to kill, do bodily injury, or conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism. The charge is a second-degree felony.
Heneen, 29, had been employed with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office for 6 years and 5 months. He was placed on leave pending ter- mination.
He reportedly sent the messages while discussing the riots that had taken place on the U. S. Capitol on Janu- ary 6, 2021.
UNCLE SANDY
You are always stronger, 6, 17, 28, 39, 44, and more resourceful than you give yourself credit for. 5, 12, 31, 49, 58.
PAGE 20-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY FRIDAY, JANUARY 22, 2021