Florida man allegedly shoots, kills 1, injures 2 after writing teenage daughter a love letter: authorities
A Tampa, Florida man who allegedly sent a love letter to his daughter, shot and killed a woman while injuring two others and firing at responding police officers, officials said.
A Florida man with a violent past allegedly tried to romance his teenage daughter before killing a woman, injuring two others, and opening fire on responding police officers on Wednesday, according to authorities.
FOX 13 reported that Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw and Hillsborough State Attorney Suzy Lopez announced the arrest of 42-year-old Michael Banks on Wednesday, during a joint press briefing.
Bercaw and Lopez said officers responded to reports of shots being fired at a home on 23rd Street in Tampa, and when they arrived, they said a woman and young female ran out of the home, screaming for help.
Banks then allegedly started shooting at the responding officers, who returned fire on the suspect.
Nobody was injured in the fire exchange and Banks was taken into custody.
"This is another stark reminder of the dangers of this profession," Bercaw said during the news conference. "Our officers bravely ran into danger and stopped the threat and prevented anyone else from becoming a victim."
Once Banks was apprehended, officers entered the home and found a woman who was dead.
On Thursday, prosecutors said they believe they know why Banks went into a violent rage on Wednesday, saying he overheard his mother and another woman discuss kicking him out of the home after they learned he was "pursuing a romantic relationship with his daughter," the station reported.
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Prosecutors claim Banks got angry and felt betrayed, so he grabbed a loaded revolver then shot and killed an unidentified woman in the home.
Banks then shot at his mother and grazed her in the head, the station reported, then went after his 17-year-old daughter, who was taking a shower.
Prosecutors allege Banks fired the gun through the bathroom door, striking his daughter in the leg.
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She and her mother reportedly ran out of the house screaming for help when police arrived.
Prosecutors added that under questioning, Banks confirmed he wrote a love letter to his daughter, urging her to, "Enter into a relationship with him and not date anyone else."
The suspect has been charged with first-degree murder, two counts of first-degree attempted murder, first-degree attempted murder of a law enforcement official and illegal possession of a firearm as a felon.
Banks, who was convicted of aggravated battery for beating a pregnant woman in 2007, was held without bond.
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