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Tony Marrero - Breaking News Reporter — Tampa Police and Hillsborough Sheriff
Tony Marrero

Breaking News Reporter — Tampa Police and Hillsborough Sheriff

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. Hispano enfrenta cargos de abuso infantil por encerrar a un niño en el armario, dicen agentes
    3 hours ago• CENTRO
    John Hernández, de 41 años, de Tampa fue arrestado el 24 de enero de 2021 por un cargo de abuso infantil agravado después de que admitió haber esposado a un niño y haberlo encerrado en un armario durante horas para castigarlo, según la Oficina del Alguacil del condado de Hillsborough. .
  2. Tampa man faces child abuse charge for locking boy in closet, deputies say
    Yesterday• Crime
    John Hernandez, 41, of Tampa was arrested Sunday on an aggravated child abuse charge after he admitted to handcuffing a boy and locking him in a closet for hours at a time to punish him, deputies say.
  3. Firefighters find body in burned car in Tarpon Springs
    Jan. 22• Pinellas
    Tarpon Springs police are investigating after firefighters found a body inside a burned car late Thursday.
  5. Man accused of ramming Hillsborough deputy faces murder charge
    Jan. 22• Hillsborough
    Hillsborough sheriff's Sgt. Brian LaVigne's crumpled patrol car sits at the scene in Brandon where prosecutors say 28-year-old Travis Garrett intentionally rammed it while fleeing from other deputies on Jan. 11. Garrett faces nine charges including first degree premeditated murder of a law enforcement officer, Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren announced late Thursday.
  6. Man was shot, stabbed, killed by friend, St. Petersburg police say
    Jan. 21• St. Petersburg
    James Chin, 26, faces a charge of first-degree murder, according to St. Petersburg police.
  7. Tampa’s University Mall reopens as coronavirus vaccination site, state announces
    Jan. 21• Health
    The University Mall in Tampa, seen here in a file photo from April, is the latest coronavirus vaccine distribution site for people 65 and older and frontline health care workers, state officials announced Wednesday. Preregistration is required.
  8. Deputies investigate double homicide in Progress Village
    Jan. 21• Hillsborough
    Deputies were investigating after two people were found dead early Thursday outside a business on Pelican Creek Circle in Riverview.
  9. Video shows Tampa officer shooting man who raised gun, police say
    Jan. 19• Tampa
    Jeremy D. Liwag, 28, shown here in a video from a Tampa police officer's body camera, raised a gun toward officers before he was shot, police said.
  10. Madre de Plant City arrestada por homicidio involuntario después de que su hijo se ahogara en la bañera
    Jan. 19• CENTRO
    Yesica Boxtha, 23, was arrested on Jan. 17, 2021 on a charge of aggravated manslaughter of a child, records show. The arrest comes more than four months after Boxtha's 8-month-old son Mateo Montoya drowned in a bathtub.
  11. Plant City mother arrested on manslaughter charge after son drowns in bathtub
    Jan. 19• Crime
    Yesica Boxtha, 23, of Plant City was arrested Sunday on a charge of aggravated manslaughter of a child, records show. The arrest comes more than four months after Boxtha's 8-month-old son Mateo Montoya drowned in a bathtub.
  12. Man in electric wheelchair fatally struck by car in St. Petersburg, troopers say
    Jan. 19• St. Petersburg
    A 68-year-old St. Petersburg died Monday after he was struck by a car while trying to cross Park Street in an electric wheelchair, troopers said.
  13. Gunfire at Tampa strip club leads to I-275 crash, arrests, police say
    Jan. 19• Tampa
    At least four people were taken into custody early Tuesday after gunfire erupted at the Truth Lounge and the suspects crashed their cars on Interstate 275, police said.
  14. Daughter of fallen Hillsborough deputy reflects on his life in new video
    Jan. 15• Hillsborough
    Hillsborough sheriff's Deputy Caitlin LaVigne is seen in a screenshot from a video released by the Sheriff's Office on Friday. In the video, LaVigne reflects on the life of her father, Master Cpl. Brian LaVigne, who died on Jan. 11 when a suspect intentionally crashed into his patrol car, the Sheriff's Office said.
  15. Bicyclist, 54, dies after being struck by pickup truck in Madeira Beach
    Jan. 15• Pinellas
    A 54-year-old woman died Thursday after she was struck by a pickup while riding an electric bicycle in Madeira Beach, deputies said.
  16. Father fatally shoots son in St. Petersburg, police say
    Jan. 15• St. Petersburg
    St. Petersburg police say a father fatally shot his son early Friday during an argument at a home in the city's Historic Uptown neighborhood.
  17. Tampa Chief Brian Dugan on coronavirus diagnosis: ‘It’s been a rollercoaster’
    Jan. 13• Health
    Tampa police Chief Brian Dugan took a selfie Wednesday as he recovers at home from COVID-19. Dugan, 54, is a prostate cancer survivor but said he is not considered immunocompromised because his cancer was treated with surgery, not chemotherapy or radiation.
  18. Two injured in St. Petersburg shooting
    Jan. 13• St. Petersburg
    Check tampabay.com for the latest breaking news and updates.
  19. A Hillsborough deputy was almost to retirement. Then a fleeing suspect took a fatal turn.
    Jan. 13• Crime
    Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office Cpl. Brian LaVigne was killed by a fleeing suspect Monday evening after a 30-year career that was supposed to end in retirement a day later, Sheriff Chad Chronister said.
  20. Four dead in separate Sunday homicides in Hillsborough County
    Jan. 11• Tampa
    Check tampabay.com for the latest breaking news and updates.
  21. 71 arrestos en Hillsborough por prostitución antes del Super Bowl 55
    Jan. 11• CENTRO
    El sheriff del condado de Hillsborough, Chad Chronister, aparece en una conferencia de prensa el 11 de enero de 2021 para anunciar los resultados de una operación encubierta de un mes de duración dirigida a los aspirantes a clientes que solicitaban prostitutas. Más de 70 personas fueron detenidas.
  22. Worker dies in apparent accident at St. Petersburg Home Depot, police say
    Jan. 11• Pinellas
    Check tampabay.com for the latest breaking news and updates.
  23. 71 arrested in Hillsborough prostitution sting ahead of Super Bowl 55
    Jan. 11• Hillsborough
    Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister on Monday announces the results of a monthlong undercover sting operation targeting would-be johns who solicited prostitutes. More than 70 people were arrested.
  24. Tampa police chief Brian Dugan tests positive for COVID-19
    Jan. 11• Tampa
    Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan, shown here at a November news conference, tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday, the department announced Monday.