Store clerk shot two nights after brother is shot

[EDMUND D. FOUNTAIN | Times]

St. Petersburg police investigate a shooting at the Suhani convenience store on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Street N. Click to enlarge photo.

ST. PETERSBURG — The owner of a convenience store was shot during a robbery Wednesday night, just two days after his brother was shot during a similar robbery at a St. Petersburg deli.

Indravadan Patel, 46, was shot during a holdup at his store at 2539 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. N. The store, which is now called Suhani, was well-known for years as MaNNY’s before Patel bought it in 2005.

Police said Patel was taken to Bayfront Medical Center in stable condition and was talking when he arrived. In fact, police said Patel told them that his brother had been in Room 203.

On Monday night, Narendra Patel was shot during a robbery at his store, Star Deli, 2451 Fifth Ave. N. He was released from the hospital Wednesday.

“That’s two family members in three days. That’s just too much of a coincidence,” said Janmejay Patel, the son of Narendra Patel. “It just doesn’t seem safe to run a small business now.”

Police hadn’t made arrests in either shooting late Wednesday night. Police said they hadn’t determined if the robberies are related.

“Who knows? Robberies this time of year pick up,” said St. Petersburg police Lt. Mike Kovacsev. “You get things like this happening.”

The Patel family rushed to the convenience store Wednesday night after the shooting. A woman among them was wearing pajama bottoms.

Police said the holdup occurred about 10:15 p.m. Family members said Patel was cooperating with the robber when he was shot. His brother also cooperated with his attacker Monday but was shot anyway.

Police didn’t release a detailed description of the robber, but said he may have had an accomplice. They were reviewing a surveillance tape early today.

Patel bought the well-known store from Manny Bonotan, who had run one of the few independent gas stations in the county. The store had become an icon in the city, and Patel promised to run it much the same when he took over.

“We’ll have cheaper gas prices than the brand stores. Just like before,” he told the St. Petersburg Times in 2006.

Patel named the store Suhani after his daughter.

“It’s upsetting because you have a businessman just struggling to make a living and then something like this happens,” said Tim Rinker, who owns the barbershop next door to Suhani.

Rinker heard about the shooting and came to the store. He said his employees often shop there, while Patel comes to his place for haircuts.

“Before anybody else gets hurt we want to catch these guys,” Janmejay Patel said. “This is not funny any more. This is very scary.”

Police are asking anyone with information about the robberies to call 727-893-7780.

--Stephanie Garry, Times Staff Writer

Photo: Janmejay Patel, 27, watches over the scene at the Suhani convenience store after his uncle was shot there about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday. His father was shot in a similar incident on Monday. "The American dream is not the American dream anymore," he said referring to the dangers of operating a business such as a gas station. "Nobody wants to own a small business." Click to enlarge photo.

Zoo president's proposed fine for unauthorized construction: $46,036

POLK COUNTY -- Water district lawyers say Lowry Park Zoo president Lex Salisbury should pay $46,036 in fines for excavating ponds and dredging wetlands without the appropriate environmental permits at his for-profit exotic animal park in Polk County.

Water managers say Safari Wild owners Salisbury and St. Petersburg veterinarian Stephen Wehrmann failed to obtain environmental permits for any of the changes they made on their 258 acres near the Green Swamp, which include animal pens and buildings, a marsh habitat and a one-acre island and surrounding moat.

All new commercial projects need Environmental Resource Permits, which ensure that stormwater is being properly treated and that neighbors aren't affected by flooding.

The water district outlines Safari Wild's violations:

Excavation of approximately 1.9 acres, covering about 1.83 acres with fill material, covering approximately 1.22 acres with impervious material, replcement of existing pipes with larger pipes along the drainage conveyance system, dredging and filling actvities resulting in impacts to approximately 0.3 acres of forested wetlands, the discharge of turbid water and sediment into 0.8 acres of wetland, lack of proper turbidity and erosion control measures throughout the property and the continued excavation of a pond after owners were told to stop their work.

The Southwest Florida Water Management District presented Salisbury with a consent order today, which says he has 14 days to agree to the fines or initiate a negotiation process. If they do come to an agreement, the district's 13-member board would review the fines for approval. If Salisbury and the district can't come to an agreement, the case could go into litigation.

Apart from the fines, Safari Wild will have to submit applications to authorize all construction that has taken place. Or as an alternative, owners can submit a plan to restore the property to its original condition, as it existed prior to the unauthorized activities.

Safari Wild has been working with the district to secure permits for remaining roadwork.

Safari Wild co-owner Wehrmann says, "We've talked with Swiftmud. We're working with them to solve these problems." He said Safari Wild never applied for the permits because owners interpreted the project to be an agricultural one, a working game farm.

"We're not big-time developers," he said. "We're both animal people...We just didn't know all these things came into play."

-- Times staff writer Alexandra Zayas can be reached at azayas@sptimes.com (813) 226-3354.

Bicyclist killed in Dade City

A male bicyclist was killed around 6 p.m. tonight when his bike collided with a vehicle, according to Pasco Fire Rescue. They did not release the victim’s age or name. The accident occurred in Dade City on State Road 301 near McDonald Street. The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating. No other injuries were reported.

- Helen Anne Travis, Times Staff Writer

Teen arrested in string of 7-Eleven robberies

ST. PETERSBURG -- Three 7-Eleven stores were robbed at gunpoint in 90 minutes early Wednesday. By the afternoon, police had a 17-year-old suspect in handcuffs.

St. Petersburg police arrested Jarvis King on one count of armed robbery today and more charges may be pending. Despite his age, King's criminal record includes 11 previous charges such as possession of cocaine, marijuana, grand theft auto and battery.

Nurse robs own nursing home at gunpoint

CLEARWATER -- Registered Nurse Michael Villafana took a sick day on Nov. 26. That was also the day police say his employer, Highland Pines Nursing Home, was robbed of narcotics by a masked gunman.

Coincidence? The authorities think not.

Villafana (pictured), 31, was arrested today on a charge of armed robbery by Clearwater police.

According to police, a masked man used an employee access code to get inside the Highland Pines Nursing Home at 111 S Highland Ave. Armed with a 9mm pistol, police say, he robbed the staff of prescription painkillers such as hydrocodone, methadone, morphine and oxycodone. The robber then used the same code to escape the building, police say.

Investigators later determined Villafana is addicted to pain medication and say he was the masked gunman who robbed his own co-workers and employer. Police say they also recovered a gun and drugs from the robbery.

Villafana, of 600 Starkey Road in Largo, is being held in the Pinellas County jail in lieu of $50,000 bail. Court records show he pleaded not guilty to the charge today.

Jamal Thalji, Times staff writer

[Photo: Pinellas County Sheriff's Office]

Ross Perot visits Tampa VA hospital

TAMPA -- Texas tycoon H. Ross Perot visited the James A. Haley VA Medical Center today to take a tour of the hospital and speak to some severely wounded veterans.

Perot spent the morning at the Department of Veterans Affairs hospital and praised wounded warriors and the hospital staff for their work helping troops recover.

"I can tell you without any question this (hospital) is right there at the top of the best run hospitals I have ever seen in the world," Perot said in brief comments to reporters. "When I see the care and attention and the advanced medical technology used to help these people return to a normal life, I just can't tell you how much I appreciate it."

Perot said wounded troops he spoke to were all in high spirits, which he said spoke well to the high quality of care they receive.

"It makes you proud to be an American," said Perot, whom the VA said had asked to take a tour. Reporters were not invited along.

Perot, 78, ran for president in 1992 and 1996 as a third-party candidate and has worked extensively in veterans affairs.

-- William R. Levesque, Times Staff Writer

Search back on for two men

TAMPA -- The search has resumed for two missing men whose single-engine plane disappeared over the Gulf of Mexico, this time by the Citrus County Sheriff's Office.

The U.S. Coast Guard had been searching for Zachary Schlitt, 28, of West Palm Beach and Darien Peckham, 34, of Tampa, since their plane disappeared 20 miles southwest of Yankeetown on Sunday. The Citrus County Sheriff, which owns sonar equipment that can find submerged objects, joined the search on Monday afternoon.

At 5:40 p.m Tuesday, 48 hours after the men disappeared, the Coast Guard officials said they were stopping the search pending further developments.

Just before noon Wednesday, three Citrus County Sheriff's deputies resumed their search. Tuesday's search conditions were "truly terrible," said Citrus Sheriff spokeswoman Gail Tierney, adding that there were six-foot seas and water visibility of less than a foot.

"They are stil out there as we speak," said Gail Tierney, spokeswoman for the sheriff's office. "They wanted to at least give it another shot."

Until Tuesday evening, the Coast Guard crews searched for the men for more than 40 hours over a 2,800-square mile area focusing on two areas where a seat and a flight bag containing aviation headphones were found. There was no sign of the men or their plane.

The two were traveling in a small Tampa-bound plane when, at about 6:45 p.m Sunday, an air traffic controller in Jacksonville reported that their 35-year-old twin-engine, fixed-wing Beech 35 Debonair aircraft, traveling from Tallahassee to Vandenberg Airport, lost contact, according to the FAA. The Coast Guard says the plane crashed into the gulf shortly after disappearing from radar.

St. Pete: Victim sues shooter's mother and mall for lack of security

ST. PETERSBURG -- James Dolan, the St. Petersburg man who was shot and blinded by a gunman in 2004 while he worked at Radio Shack, has sued the mother of the shooter for failing to help police find her son after a road rage incident earlier in the day.

Dolan and his wife, Christine, also named Radio Shack and Gateway Mall as defendants for failing to provide adequate security at the mall, at 7885 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. N in St. Petersburg.

The 30-year-old father of three, whose home was redone by Extreme Makover months after the shooting, is blind in both eyes and suffers panic attacks. A few months ago, he sued an insurance provider for failing to provide worker's compensation benefits.

Leonora LaPeter, Times Staff Writer

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2 attorneys meeting with Gov. Crist about Pinellas-Pasco judgeship

Attorneys John "Jack" Helinger and Thomas H. Minkoff are finalists for a vacant Pinellas-Pasco circuit judge position and are interviewing with Gov. Charlie Crist this afternoon.

An announcement on who will fill the vacancy is expected this week. The vacancy was created when Judge Nelly N. Khouzam was appointed to the Second District Court of Appeals.

Helinger, 57, is a former prosecutor and longtime local attorney who is married to Circuit Judge Chris Helinger.

Minkoff, 58, was the 2006 pro bono volunteer of the year for Gulf Coast Legal Services in Pinellas County. 

Curtis Krueger, Times Staff Writer

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Clearwater lowers the boom on loud stereos

CLEARWATER -- Police have unveiled a new program designed to make sure people with loud car stereos have to face the music.

A link on the Police Department's Web site, www.clearwaterpolice.org, lets people report the loud noise.

The person making the report should note the date, location, and vehicle type and tag number, as well as a brief description of the driver if possible, police said.

A police officer must witness the violation in order to take action and issue the $91 fine. But the online report will result in a letter to the owner of the vehicle.

Florida statutes prohibit anyone in a motor vehicle from using any device to produce sound that can be heard from 25 feet outside the car. An exemption to the law exists for motor vehicles used for "business or political purposes."

So don't drop the dime on the ice cream truck.

Jonathan Abel, Times Staff Writer

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Old Tampa City Hall gets aluminum windows, and Tasered man gets Barry Cohen

TAMPA -- Less than a week after a man was Tasered during a contentious code enforcement meeting (read story here), the city's Architectural Review Commission has voted to allow the city to put aluminum windows instead of wood windows in City Hall, a historic building.

City officials say historically appropriate wood windows would be too expensive.

Ironically, that's the same building where Tampa attorney Carl Hayes last week was stunned by a Taser and arrested after a code enforcement hearing where he asked for leniency on obligations to put wood windows in his historic Tampa home.

Hayes, 53, pictured, referred all questions to his attorney, Barry Cohen.

"It appears to me that an injustice was done here," Cohen said, adding that his firm is reviewing the facts of the case to determine what action it will take on behalf of Hayes.

"What we do know is there's a professional way to handle things and an unprofessional way to handle things," Cohen said. "And law enforcement is to handle things professionally."

Tampa police spokeswoman Laura McElroy said a captain reviewed the Taser incident and determined that Officer Don Miller acted appropriately. She said Miller, a 14-year TPD veteran, has provided security to more than 300 city council and code enforcement board meetings.

Julie Brown was the only member of the architectural review board who voted against the aluminum windows Monday.

"It really upset me, especially when we don't allow it for residential buildings," Brown said.

Hayes' case did not come up, she said, but the board did talk briefly about the precedent the city was setting.

Hayes has accumulated more than $1,000 in fines since being cited for putting aluminum windows in his Seminole Heights home instead of the wood windows required under historic preservation codes. Hayes told code officials that the wood windows were too expensive, especially considering his financial difficulties after serious health problems.

Tampa police said Hayes became "agitated" during the meeting and was asked to leave. Hayes struck an officer in the face as he was being escorted out, police say. He was Tasered two times and then booked into jail on charges of trespassing, battery on law enforcement officer and obstructing an officer.

He was released from jail after two hours, records show.

"He's saddened by this, to say the least," Cohen said, "and he's embarrassed by it.'' But he's happy to have the law firm's support, he said. 

Rebecca Catalanello and Janet Zink, Times Staff Writers

Hear audio of Hayes' hearing

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Forget Redington; it's now the Dubai Long Pier

The Redington Long Pier has been renamed the Dubai Long Pier because of a long-running dispute between the owner and the city.

"I told City Hall they are not honorable enough to put their name on my pier,'' said pier owner Tony Antonious.

Antonious complains that he spent $500,000 in legal fees and repairs over the city's contention that the 1,021-foot-long, 46-year-old pier was unsafe. This dispute has been going on for four years. The repairs were finished about a year ago and Antonious has been trying to get the land rezoned so he can build a condo building in the parking lot.

A judge ordered it partly closed two years ago while repairs were made.

So why Dubai?

Antonious said he has visited Dubai several times and found it to be a compassionate country. Dubai deserves the name more than Redington Shores, he said.

He's also having financial problems because of the dispute with the city and is trying to find a buyer, he said. He said he had offers from several people in Dubai. He quietly changed the name about a month ago.

-- Sheila Estrada, Times correspondent

It's Your Times: Is this bound to confuse tourists?

[Photo: Edmund D. Fountain, Times files]

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Dunedin man arrested on child pornography charge

DUNEDIN -- A 58-year-old Dunedin man has been arrested on a child pornography charge.

Robert Alan Mooney was taken into custody by Pinellas County sheriff's deputies at 9:45 a.m. today at his home at 3075 Park Lane Apartment A.

The arrest stems from an investigation that started after Mooney took his computer in to a repair shop on Aug. 25, the Sheriff's Office said. A technician at the store found that Mooney had pictures of children engaged in sex acts. The clerk reported the find to the Sheriff's Office.

Mooney, who works at Sweet Bay supermarket, is being held at the Pinellas County Jail in lieu of $5,000 bail on one count of possession of child pornography.

--Jonathan Abel, Times Staff Writer

Tampa Electric agreement causes sparks

TAMPA -- Unable to get face time with four City Council members who support Tampa's franchise agreement with Tampa Electric, opponents of the proposed 25-year contract voiced their concerns at a news conference today across the street from City Hall.

They say the agreement, which determines how much the utility has to pay to use city rights of way for its power lines, should include more commitments to conservation and putting power lines underground.

Don Mellman, with the Physicians for Social Responsibility, says Tampa Electric should reduce its reliance on coal to power its plants because the resulting pollution can cause health problems like asthma and lung damage.

"The citizens of Tampa Bay are at a severe risk," he said.

City Council member Linda Saul-Sena, the most vocal opponent of the agreement, hosted the event.

"We need to have clean energy in our community," she said. At the very least, she said, she'd like to postpone approving the agreement for six months to see if changes in state and federal policy on renewable energy might affect the contract.

Warren Clark, pastor at First United Church of Tampa, said he wants to see the utility show more interest in protecting the environment.

"We want to pass forward to Florida's children a livable creation where we have turned the corner on global warming," he said.

The council is scheduled to take a final vote on the contract at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

Janet Zink, Times Staff Writer

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Photo: Scary sight, but no one hurt

A 1999 Ford Taurus sits on top of the bridge railing on 8th Street South, near 8th Avenue South on Wednesday, Dec. 3. According to St. Petersburg Police, Michelle Christine Olson (beside car) told police she was driving on 8th Street when her left tire caught the curb and pulled her up the barrier wall. She also told police that someone forced her to the side of the street. No one was injured. Olson was cited for careless driving. [CHRIS ZUPPA | Times]

Mist-ical flight

A great egret flies through steam rising off Allen's Creek in Clearwater. Morning temperatures dipped into the low 40s Wednesday.  [JIM DAMASKE, Times]

Testimony resumes in rape trial

LARGO –- Testimony has resumed in the trial of Dwayne Edward Sheppard, the 43-year-old man accused of raping a woman 23 years ago in her Oldsmar home.

This morning, Bernard J. Garelle, a former neighbor of the victim, said that on the night of the crime in 1985, he saw a man drive into the neighborhood in a turquoise Dodge Charger-type car. He did not identify the man. A former Clearwater police officer, Terry Naumann, testified that she worked a case in July 1985 in which Sheppard reported a stolen car, a blue Mercury Cougar with a white vinyl top. Outside the presence of the jury, attorneys noted that the two types of cars looked similar.

Additional law enforcement officers are expected to testify this afternoon.

Curtis Krueger, Times Staff Writer

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Four Tampa Bay first responders honored by Crist

TAMPA -- Hillsborough County sheriff's Deputy Malachi McCoy isn't the only Tampa Bay area first responder honored today by Gov. Charlie Crist.

Tampa police Officer Ryan Jurjevich (pictured) is also among the 11 receiving the Governor's Medal of Heroism in Tallahassee.

In January, Jurjevich jumped 35 feet from the Howard Frankland Bridge into 55 degree water to rescue a woman clinging to a bridge piling after a suicide attempt.

Jurjevich swam to her, put a life preserver around her and then held her as other officers pulled both to safety using a rope. During the rescue, the woman passed out and the rope frayed, but Jurjevich wrapped his legs around her so as not to lose his grip on her. Jurjevich suffered hypothermia. His body returned to a normal temperature after more than an hour.

To read the original story, click here.

Two others with Tampa Bay ties were expected to get medals at the capital ceremony.

Florida Department of Law Enforcement special agents Bob and Paul Ura are recipients of the FDLE's "Medal of Valor."

The brothers (pictured, Bob at left, Paul at right), were vacationing in Las Vegas with their families when, on July 6, 2007, a distressed gunman opened fire into a crowded casino.

Paul and Bob Ura and a third man tackled and disarmed the suspect.

To read the original story about the brothers' actions, click here.

Rebecca Catalanello, Times Staff Writer

Photos by Times photographers Chris Zuppa, above, and Julia Kamari Drapkin, below.

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Residents evicted from St. Pete motel

Janai Frails, 18, hugs her crying mother, Ruby, 37, at the JMS Hotel on 34th Street S in St. Petersburg. "I'm going home," Ruby Frails said after finding out that St. Petersburg officials would help her get back to Rhode Island, where she's from. [WILLIE J. ALLEN JR. | Times]

UPDATE The manager of the motel property is blaming the evictions on Progress Energy and crime in the neighborhood.

Darrell Kelley, the motel manager and a former shareholder who lives in Holiday, said the hotel received an unusually high electric bill in January and asked for an audit. He said the power company agreed not to collect until the audit was done but the hotel owners never got the audit results. Kelley added that the owners could pay the delinquent electric bill, but were tired of crime at the hotel.

"We want to start all over if we can, but right now, there's too much going on with the code violations and the drug trafficking,'' he said.

The motel's problems are much deeper than an unpaid electric bill: Court records show it is in foreclosure, and a few days ago the state issued a warrant for $3,902 in delinquent sales taxes.

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ST. PETERSBURG -- Remaining residents of a motel on 34th Street S are being evicted because the owner didn't pay the electric bill.

The electricity at JMS Hotel, 4601 34th St. S, was shut off a week ago. Tenants have been using candles and lanterns. They have until 5 p.m. to evacuate.

Most of the 53 people who were living at the motel, formerly called Knight's Inn, moved out Tuesday night. Several families remain, and city and county social service workers are helping to move them.

Khaleah Morrell, 2, uses a crayon to write on the window while Tracy Martinez, 22 and Jezzell Rosemond, 23, watch at the Jesus is My Savior motel on Wednesday. [WILLIE J. ALLEN JR. | Times]

Man found dead in Brooksville pond

Marie Brenneman tries to hold back tears as Brooksville police work the scene on Clare Court where her former brother-in-law, Franklin Evans Sr., 61, was found in a pond at a mobile home park. [WILL VRAGOVIC | Times]

BROOKSVILLE -- A Brooksville man who had a history of drinking problems was found dead this morning in a pond at the Clover Leaf Farms mobile home park, on the city's north side. He apparently drove a golf cart into the pond and drowned.

The man was identified as Franklin Evans Sr., 61.

Woman shot by boyfriend in Tampa, deputies say

TAMPA -- A 50-year-old woman was shot in the neck by her boyfriend Tuesday evening, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.

Ranaye M. Donnelly, of 2010 51st St., was taken to Tampa General Hospital awake and alert after being shot just behind her ear, said J.D. Callaway, a spokesman for the Sheriff's Office.

At 5:40 p.m., deputies responded to a call of shots fired at Donnelly's address and began chasing a 36-year-old man, according to Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Debbie Carter. The man was later identified in an arrest affidavit as Donnelly's boyfriend, Julian Luhan (pictured), of the same address. Deputies say the two got into an argument that escalated to the man shooting Donnelly.

Lujan was caught on 47th Street near 19th Avenue minutes later, and deputies found a gun, but it is unclear if it was the weapon used in the shooting, Callaway said. The arrest affidavit states that Lujan admitted to the offense.

Lujan initially refused to identify himself to police, Carter said. When deputies were able to confirm who he was, he was booked into the Hillsborough County Jail without bail.

Robbyn Mitchell and Kim Wilmath, Times Staff Writers

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Baby, it's cold outside

Brace yourself for colder weather. A cold front blowing through the East Coast is responsible for freezing temperatures in the interior parts of Hillsborough County and north.

Most places in the Tampa Bay area were near 30 degrees overnight, said Todd Barron, a National Weather Service meteorologist. Spots closer to the coast, like Pinellas County, experienced about 40 degrees, he said.

Farther north, in Brooksville, it was 26 degrees at 7 a.m. "They're having a pretty good freeze right now," Barron said. Along U.S. 41, frost could be seen blanketing an open field (pictured). The National Weather Service had issued overnight freeze warnings for Citrus and Hernando that expired at 8 a.m.

Today's high temperatures are forecast to reach the upper 60s.

Bay area temperatures are not likely to dip below the mid 30s or 40s tonight, Barron said. Tomorrow will be warmer.

For now, "dress in layers. Bundle up," he said. "I think we're getting the hang of the routine now."

Kim Wilmath, Times Staff Writer; photo by Will Vragovic of the Times staff

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Northbound 50th Street in Tampa still closed

TAMPA -- All northbound lanes of 50th Street between Adamo Drive and Broadway Avenue are still closed after a water main break Tuesday.

Northbound traffic on 50th Street is being diverted at Adamo either west to 39th Street or east to Orient Road. Southbound 50th is open, according to the Tampa Water Department. Repairs on the northbound lanes should be complete by the end of the week.

Kim Wilmath, Times Staff Writer

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Wesley Chapel motorcyclist dies in crash

NEW PORT RICHEY -- A 59-year-old Wesley Chapel man died Tuesday night when his motorcycle collided with a car at Grand Boulevard and Trouble Creek Road, according to Florida Highway Patrol.

At about 8:40 p.m., James Patrick Enoch, 19, of New Port Richey, was driving a 1988 four-door Nissan north on Grand Boulevard and tried to turn left on to Trouble Creek Road. Deputies said Enoch turned into the path of Gary Don Luker, who was driving his 2006 Honda motorcycle south on Grand Boulevard through the intersection.

Luker, who was wearing a helmet, died at the scene, deputies said. Enoch and his passenger, 19-year-old Andrew Reynaud, also of New Port Richey, were not injured. No charges have been filed.

Kim Wilmath, Times Staff Writer

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