Victim in I-4 shooting in Tampa ID'd as Orlando man

BayNews 9 ^ | Sunday, June 30, 2013, 7:30 AM | Staff

[rarestia]

The motorist killed in a shooting that closed eastbound Interstate 4 in Tampa for nearly eight hours Saturday has been identified as a 47-year-old Orlando man.

Fred William Turner Jr. was fatally shot while he was on a cell phone telling a 911 dispatcher someone with a gun was pursuing him, authorities said.

The shooting happened around 3 p.m. and prompted authorities to close I-4 at I-75 while they examined the scene and searched for clues. The closure eventually stretched west to U.S. 301 and didn't end until nearly 11 p.m.

Turner, who was driving a newer model Ford Mustang, told the dispatcher he was being followed by a man with a gun in the area of North 50th Street and East Columbus Drive. The pursuer drove a gray Ford Taurus with tinted windows, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said.

Turner told the dispatcher that before the man had started following him, he had pulled up next to him, rolled down a window and brandished a semi-automatic handgun. He didn't know the man or why he started following him.

Turner stayed on the phone with the dispatcher while he drove onto I-4 and headed east toward Orlando. As he approached the I-75 overpass, shots rang out and Turner was hit, authorities said.

Turner pulled his car over and died at the scene, deputies said.

Three law enforcement agencies - the sheriff's office, Tampa police and the Florida Highway Patrol - participated in the investigation Saturday. Authorities are asking that anyone who has relevant information call Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay at 1-800-873-8377.

[Frank_2001]

“Meekly rolling down the road while someone quite obviously is intending to kill you is not going to end well no matter what.”

Agreed...criminals are extremely skilled at lying compared to law-abiding people, and will cast themselves as victims, and you as the aggressor!

[NautiNurse]

This will come out as being a black-on-white crime

Setting the record straight: Your prediction was flatly incorrect, and it isn't clear what you hoped to accomplish by your unsubstantiated assertion.

[rarestia]

Are you from the area, ma’am? Do you know ANYTHING about this part of Florida? Are you aware that this part of east Tampa is over 80% black? Are you aware that this part of Tampa is less than 2 miles from the Ybor City district, known as “Little Havana” by many in the area?

I made a judgement call based on what I know of the area having lived here for over 30 years. White people make it a point to avoid this area. The fact that the perp is a white guy indicates that he falls well outside of statistical probability for a criminal in this area.

I wasn’t hoping to accomplish anything. You’re implying that I’m trying to stoke some sort of racial flames, and you could not be more misguided in that assumption.

[NautiNurse]

You explicitly introduced your false statement by implying that you had insider information: "I've spoken with a member of Tampa PD who used this event as an example to illustrate..."

Your "judgment call" did not stipulate that you were providing unsubstantiated wishcasting, "This will come out as being a black-on-white crime..."

[rarestia]

Umm... I never implied that I had insider information. I said I spoke with a member of TPD who used this event AS AN EXAMPLE TO ILLUSTRATE that even though Florida is a “Stand Your Ground” state, the thugs will still behave like thugs.

I never anywhere implied that I had insider information. That TPD officer, who happens to be family, would’ve put their career on the line by giving me any information about the crime. Thus, I introduced nothing false, I provided a factual recollection of one responding officer’s OPINION, and that opinion wasn’t even related to race! The officer said THUGS, not blacks. Sheesh.

Wishcasting? Again, if you’re not from the area, you’ve got absolutely ZERO frame of reference.