Tony MarreroHillsborough Law Enforcement Reporter
A Baltimore native, I've lived in the Tampa Bay area since 1998 and have been a reporter here for nearly that long. I joined the Times in 2009 and have covered beats ranging from from education to criminal courts. I now cover breaking news and general assignment stories in the Tampa bureau, which means I never know exactly what will come my way on any given day. I like that variety and enjoy digging to tell readers more about the big stories of the day.
/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/tbt/30841d7b-bd23-4841-9d1d-8170ea76fc4a.png "Tony Marrero - Hillsborough Law Enforcement Reporter")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/KN33WSTTRNG3BPMA6TORQ53VVM.jpg "Traffic streams southbound over the Sunshine Skyway Bridge in July 2021, about a month after a contractor completed construction of fencing meant to deter suicides from the iconic span. In the 12 months since the barrier was completed, two people have jumped to their deaths, well below the average 12 to 15 people per year who died by jumping from the bridge before the fencing, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/WCJO4JURMVGBPFAVGITMDBMKTU.jpg "Steve Yerrid, left, answers questions during a news conference at his Tampa office on Tuesday about a lawsuit filed by his client Danyelle Madsen, the widow of Tampa police Master Patrol Officer Jesse Madsen. The lawsuit claims the Florida Department of Transportation and one of its contractors, Transcore ITS LLC, failed to ensure a wrong-way driver detection system at Interstate 275's Busch Boulevard exit worked properly on March 9, 2021, leading to the death of Jesse Madsen in wrong way crash.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/BVQJB7IETZG3RDY3GUQSYVGJHI.jpg "First responders work at the scene of a fatal crash in the northbound lanes of Interstate 75 at the Selmon Expressway exit on Friday.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/5T2ISH25Y5G75COISNC7MECQYQ.png "A 65-year-old St. Petersburg man died Thursday after a car struck him as he tried to cross Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard in Clearwater, police said.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/JI3NNF32DBCMLJCPB7S4H7IU5A.jpg "Crysi Marie Coleman, 18, was fatally shot on Aug. 29 by 16-year-old Yanmarkoz Jimenez while the two were hanging out at the Tampa home of Sabian Taft, prosecutors said. Taft was charged with evidence tampering after the shooting and sentenced Thursday to 30 days jail followed by three months probation.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/ZACRUYR6SRG7LDXSMLHCW5B2OE.jpg "Tampa police Chief Mary O’Connor, center, speaks to reporters during a news conference at Tampa Police Department headquarters on June 7, one day after two unrelated shootings in east Tampa left one man dead and two other people injured. O'Connor on Friday will host a community forum on violent crime in east Tampa's Ybor Heights neighborhood.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/6D2Y354DYBCRBCNQ4IRL5MYZW4.jpg "This screen capture from surveillance video taken in the Falkenburg Road Jail on June 7 shows inmate Bridgette Lee Harvey, wearing orange jail garb, using a pillow case to try to choke detention Deputy Lillian Jimenez from behind, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office. Harvey and another inmate face charges in connection to the attack, deputies said.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/6BGOVWEKHZE2ZFQSUPRAYLNJX4.png "A minivan fatally struck a man Sunday as he tried to cross 34th Street South near 46th Avenue in St. Petersburg, police said.")
:format(webP)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/QWWEQPO2XRFSJJZL7C4BF33BJE.jpg "Sherron David McCombs, Jr., pictured in a Hillsborough County booking photo from September 2019, drowned Sunday in the Current River near Doniphan, Missouri, authorities said. McCombs, 22, was wanted in connection to two separate murders in Tampa.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/3BPUTXCRHVA7JAQJT6NHT2ZWYE.jpg "Traffic is seen heading south on the Howard Frankland Bridge in this file photo from June 2021. A man found dead in Tampa Bay near the bridge on Monday was the registered owner of a crashed Lexus found crashed on the shoulder of the southbound span early Sunday, troopers said.")
:format(webP)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/OUG3GY3LBFAB5BPWSVJCWSKJBM.jpg "Taylor Lucien Moise, 39, has been arrested in connection to a crash that killed bicyclist Joshua Kidd as he rode along Hartford Street in Tampa early Friday, records show. Moise faces charges of DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/OKASNNCSCRCKDG54DGFWIJIIRU.jpg "A Cessna sits where it came to rest at St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport after crashing into a fence near the corner of Ulmerton Road and Stoneybrook Drive on Monday. The plane's brakes failed upon landing, an airport spokesperson said. The pilot, who was flying alone, was not injured.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/2DSHYWFT3BENHI6PX5REJBLTCI.JPG "Tampa assistant police Chief Ruben “Butch” Delgado speaks at a news conference at the department's downtown headquarters on Feb. 8 after Mayor Jane Castor announced that she had selected Mary O’Connor as her pick for the new police chief. Delgado was serving as interim chief at the time and was one of three finalists. The department confirmed Friday that he is retiring to take a job in the private sector. His last day is July 1.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/RGIXDZNHRBABLF7J4GYFBFZEYU.JPG "Tampa police Chief Mary O'Connor holds a copy of \"Emotional Survival for Law Enforcement\" by Kevin M. Gilmartin while speaking at a news conference Friday. O'Connor called the news conference to highlight progress made during her first 100 days on the job and said she bought 1,400 copies of Gilmartin's book to distribute to department personnel as part of an effort to bolster officer wellness. O'Connor also announced a tweak to the department's pursuit policy.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/R4AMY6JWEBCSPNF7HG5BOH3Q7U.jpg "Firefighters battle a fire that broke out at a home on the 9900 block of Joe Ebert Road on Thursday night. A 10-year-old boy was pulled from the house and hospitalized, authorities said.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/AGR2ES5QMJDAVM6CMNBLLJXZBY.jpg "The bodies of three people were discovered at a Riverview home Wednesday morning in what is believed to be a double murder-suicide, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/HCCHOLPHVVHJLD3O6SUM7FV2EA.jpg "An image from a Tampa Police Department video posted to Facebook shows the aftermath of a police pursuit on March 12 that ended with a stolen Nissan pickup crashing into a Honda Civic, killing 44-year-old Maria Del Carmen Torres. Tampa police Chief Mary O'Connor said the pursuit appeared to be in line with the department's policy because the truck was suspected of being used in at least one auto burglary.")
:format(webP)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/E6O6YHU3TJHLNHSPW6QHTBFDUQ.jpeg "Michael Jones, 31, was arrested Wednesday morning on charges of DUI manslaughter and DUI with serious injury, the Florida Highway Patrol says.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/WNIX2ZOVP5COLMLTLPP5XRJVTE.JPG "The Tampa Police Department's downtown headquarters is pictured in March. One Tampa police officer resigned and another officer was suspended in connection to an internal investigation that found they violated department policies by taking a woman to the ground and arresting her last summer, records show.")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/RVRVTSDIFZHTTPDIIEBMCMNQXA.JPG "A mangled Pinch A Penny pickup truck sits at the scene of a crash on Bayshore Boulevard on Jan. 9, 2020 that killed retired Tampa finance executive George Gage. The pickup jumped the curb and struck Gage as he walked along the sidewalk. A Hillsborough jury this week found that the Tampa franchisee who employed the driver was negligent.")
