According to MyFox Tampa Bay, the incident occurred just before 5 a.m. when gunshots were heard in the vicinity of Banbury Avenue and Adler Street in New Port Richey. Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco said when deputies arrived on the scene, they found several people dead inside the home in the Moon Lake section of the city.
Sheriff Nocco said there is a possibility drugs may have been involved, which could have been a “targeted” hit. He also said he could not yet release the names of the victims and how they died. A woman who identified herself as being a friend of one of the victims told reporters there were at least three people living inside the home.
At a press conference Monday morning, Sherriff Nocco said, “We’ve got a violent individual, somebody who’s killed numerous people this morning. We don’t know what their next step is, but I tell you right now: Whoever you are, turn yourself in. Because in the Pasco Sheriff’s Office, we come at force with force. We don’t back down, and by any means possible, this person will be taken in.”
New Port Richey is a small municipality on the Western or Gulf Coast of Florida. Only 4.5 square miles in size, its population of almost 15,000 people lives mostly in the western or unincorporated area of the city. The area of the city where the shootings occurred has had some trouble in the past, according to neighbors. One resident, Johnny Antonio told reporters with the Tampa Tribune, “Usually it’s like the 4th of July out here” he said. “You have to worry if you don’t hear any gunshots. You have to keep everything around here tied down.”
Bruce Clark was standing in the shade of the Sunoco convenience store Monday morning when approached by reporters. He was watching the activities on Banbury Avenue. “That was a new crowd just moved in there,” he said, adding that the neighborhood is “ripe with crime.” The investigation is continuing as law enforcement seeks to determine the circumstances behind the shootings.
