CLEARWATER, Fla. — Clearwater police arrested a second person in connection to Tuesday's deadly shooting at Surf Style in addition to locating the possible murder weapon, according to police.
Police Chief Dan Slaughter detailed what led up to the shooting in which Johnathan Stanley, 20, fired upon 22-year-old Rodney Sweeney at a news conference Thursday morning.
Stanley was detained by detectives Wednesday night at the Clearwater Mall nearly an hour after an arrest warrant was issued for him, authorities said earlier. Sweeney later died from his injuries at the hospital.
Slaughter said Sweeney and Stanley had "some type of verbal contact" before the deadly shooting, but according to detectives, the two did not know each other. It is still unknown what the fight was about.
Slaughter showed a surveillance video that appeared to show Stanley coming up to 19-year-old Ja'Marrion Lee, who was with Stanley, and punching him. Moments later, Stanley takes out a gun and shoots it three times, according to the police chief.
After the shooting, Stanley tries to hide the gun in the store and tried to hide underneath some clothes, police said, adding that Sweeney's brother then finds the gun and chases after Stanley.
The brother reportedly took the firearm home, which the police were later able to recover. The chief said they are confident that is the murder weapon, pending the forensic comparisons.
Zayah Massucci, 19, is the second person arrested in connection to the shooting. He is accused of helping Stanley after the shooting. The chief said Masscucci, who works on Clearwater Beach, allowed Stanley to stay overnight at his home and went back to the area to pick up Stanley's car.
The chief says Massucci brought the car back to his home where they confronted him and arrested him on a marijuana charge. He reportedly admitted to helping Stanley and was aware of the deadly shooting from the media coverage.
Massucci has since bonded out of jail.
Watch the full news conference below: