TAMPA, Fla. — Tyrell Phillips, 22, one of the accused gunmen in a deadly Halloween weekend shooting in Ybor City, made his second appearance Thursday in a Hillsborough County courtroom.
A judge granted Phillips a continuance to push back the date of his pretrial detention hearing that will ultimately determine whether he will remain in jail prior to trial. That new date has yet to be chosen. Tyrell is charged with second-degree murder and has been in jail since he turned himself into authorities.
At the time he surrendered to detectives, Phillips had a Glock 29 10mm semi-automatic firearm in his waistband with 11 rounds in it, according to court documents. 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 claimed 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. That was when Phillips reportedly pulled out his own gun, fired a shot and then ran. He said he heard additional gunfire as he was running.
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.
Two people were killed in the Halloween weekend shooting: a 14-year-old and 20-year-old Harrison Boonstoppel. Sixteen others were injured, 15 of which had gunshot wounds.