The arrest of De’Ronte Stephens, 19, did not come through the warrant tied to a recent Tampa shooting. Tampa police took him into custody Monday on an unrelated probation-violation warrant connected to a 2024 aggravated-battery case, while the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office was investigating a separate shooting and seeking him on charges in that case, Tampa Bay 28 reported.
Two cases, different warrants
The newer case stems from a shooting shortly after midnight on Nov. 5 in the 4800 block of Claymore Drive. According to Tampa Bay 28’s account of the sheriff’s office investigation, a man was shot in the leg during an argument in a parking lot and taken to a hospital in stable condition. Detectives identified Stephens as a suspect and obtained a warrant charging him with attempted second-degree murder with a firearm, aggravated battery with a firearm, and discharging a firearm in public or on residential property. These are allegations, not findings of guilt.
Stephens was booked Monday on the older probation-violation warrant, which Tampa Bay 28 reported stemmed from a 2024 aggravated-battery case involving a previous shooting. The sheriff’s office confirmed that the man it sought in connection with the Claymore Drive shooting had been arrested, the outlet reported. Its account did not specify how the newer warrant would be handled after his arrest. HCSO said the investigation remained ongoing.
A separate prevention effort
The arrest and the city’s violence-prevention work are distinct parts of Tampa’s response to gun violence; the available information does not connect the grant or its programs to either case. In an April 2024 op-ed, Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw said the city had been awarded a $1.5 million Community Violence Intervention and Prevention Grant to help implement and expand violence-intervention programs, according to the City of Tampa.
