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Tony Marrero - Day Cops, Hillsborough Sheriff, Tampa Police Department Reporter
Tony Marrero

Day Cops, Hillsborough Sheriff, Tampa Police Department 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.

  1. ‘It happened so fast.’ Driver recalls fiery I-75 crash that killed two
    Nov. 14• Hillsborough
    Eight vehicles were involved in a fiery and fatal crash late Wednesday that left two people dead and shut down northbound Interstate 75 bridging Hillsborough and Pasco counties, authorities said. The driver of the white van pictured above, George Pagan of Tampa, said he saw the semi-trailer truck, left, sliding sideways toward him in his rearview mirror before impact.
    The chain-reaction crash that closed the northbound lanes near the Pasco-Hillsborough line started when a semi-trailer truck driver didn’t stop for traffic, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
  2. Tampa pedestrian struck, killed by SUV
    Nov. 13• Hillsborough
    Check tampabay.com for the latest breaking news and updates.
    The 47-year-old man was fatally injured after walking into the SUV’s path on E Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
  3. Driver arrested in hit-and-run crash that killed bicyclist in Tampa
    Nov. 13• Hillsborough
    Steven Duane Baker, 61, was arrested on a charge of leaving the scene of a fatal crash and destroying evidence in a crash that left a 28-year-old bicyclist dead on U.S. 301, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
    Steven D. Baker, 61, told investigators he hit something but didn’t know it was a bicyclist, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. Troopers say he should have stopped.
  4. Suspicious package at company near Tampa International Airport investigated
    Nov. 13• Tampa
    An employee at Air General on Air Cargo Road spotted something suspicious while conducting routine scans of packages, a Tampa Fire Rescue spokesman said.
  5. Motorcyclist, 55, dies in Plant City crash
    Nov. 13• Hillsborough
    Check tampabay.com for the latest breaking news and updates.
    He crashed his Harley Davidson motorcycle into the back of an SUV on U.S. 92, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
  6. Bicyclist killed in Tampa hit-and-run ‘was working so we could be a family,’ fiancee says
    Nov. 12• Hillsborough
    Jacob "Jake" Weinert, 28, seen here holding his son Jasper in 2018, was killed Tuesday morning when a pickup truck struck him from him behind while he was riding on U.S. 301 in Tampa, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
    Jacob Weinert, a 28-year-old father of two, was struck by a pickup near Sligh Avenue, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
  7. Wesley Chapel woman killed after car crashes, catches fire on I-275 in Tampa
    Nov. 12• Hillsborough
    Check tampabay.com for the latest breaking news and updates.
    Her Honda Accord caught fire after the crash near the North Nebraska Avenue overpass, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
  8. Police arrest man in fatal shooting of West Tampa couple
    Nov. 11• Crime
    On Friday, detectives quietly arrested Tyrail Kendrick and charged him with two counts of murder, one count of robbery and a count of a felon in possession of a firearm.
    Tyrail Raheem Kendrick, 26, is charged with two counts of first degree murder in the deaths of Stanley Peck and Tia Pittman.
  9. She lost a son to gunfire. Now, a couple she tried to help is shot dead.
    Nov. 11• Crime
    Tia Pittman and Stanley Peck are shown in this family photo when Pittman was pregnant with the couple's first child. Peck and Pittman were fatally shot in West Tampa on Halloween morning 2019.
    Stanley Peck and Tia Pittman were excited about making new lives in Tampa. A man arrested in their slayings also faces charges of robbery in the attack.
  10. Deputies arrest suspect in fatal shooting of woman at Brandon apartment
    Nov. 7• Hillsborough
    Richard Miller, 49, fatally shot a woman at the Westchester Apartments in Brandon on Nov. 6, 2019, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.
    Richard Miller, 49, is accused of murdering a woman who had recently broken up with him.