TAMPA, Fla. — One of the accused gunmen from the deadly Halloween shooting in Ybor City pleaded not guilty on Friday, according to court documents.
Tyrell Philips, 22, was charged with second-degree murder with a firearm after a 14-year-old and 20-year-old were killed following an exchange of gunfire between two groups on Oct. 29 in the area of East 7th Avenue and North 17th Street.
Philips made his second appearance on Thursday in a Hillsborough County courtroom, where a judge granted him a continuance to push back the date of his pretrial detention hearing, which will ultimately determine whether he will remain in jail prior to trial.
That new date has yet to be chosen.
During the night of the shooting, as detectives were arriving at the scene, they were notified that Phillips had voluntarily turned himself in. Phillips had a Glock 29 10mm semi-automatic firearm in his waistband with 11 rounds in it, according to the criminal affidavit.
After he was detained, Phillips reportedly told detectives he was with a group of friends when she saw a woman he recognized as someone he had gone to middle school with. As he was waving at the woman, Phillips said he was approached by a group of six people in an "aggressive manner."
Phillips reported that one of the people in the group took a "fighting stance" toward him, another spit at him and a third person motioned toward his waistband as if he was reaching for a gun, the affidavit says. He added that he couldn't hear what was being said because it was so loud.
Tampa police suspect that there are two additional shooters besides Phillips who fired shots in the encounter. They are partnering with the FBI to solicit tips. This new page, located at fbi.gov/tampashooting, allows people to submit information, photos and videos.