January 1 saw many incidents in St. Pete that resulted in arrests related to celebratory gunfire.
In the first case, at about 12:30 a.m. responded to a call at 2609 3rd Avenue South in reference to men in the area with guns.
As officers approached the scene shots were fired in the area and a subsequent search found four men in front of that address, two observed with rifles.
When approached by officers the four males began to flee the area on foot and all four were apprehended.
One rifle, one carbine and one handgun were recovered.
Numerous shell casings lined 3rd Avenue South indicating that the suspects had been engaged in celebratory gunfire. Four suspects were taken into custody: Jararski Ra'sharde Sandy, Samuel Madison Lavine, Arron Jordon Woody, and Elijah Dreshaud Johnson.
Then in the second case at about 2:00 a.m., officers were dispatched to a call at 640 29th Street South regarding a man shooting a rifle. Upon arrival, officers found numerous shell casings on the ground and the male suspect sitting in a red Monte Carlo parked in front of the address. An AK-47 style rifle was observed in the back seat in plain view.
Officers made contact with the man and began asking him about the weapon, but he refused to provide any demographic information or talk about the weapon. He was subsequently taken into custody. He was identified as Arron Rodriguez Hinson. He was taken to the Pinellas County Jail and charged with obstruction and felon in possession of a firearm.
In another case, a St. Petersburg Police officer was preparing go on duty and was entering his cruiser when he noticed that the windshield had been damaged by an apparent falling bullet. The damage had already occurred prior to his arrival so it not known precisely when the bullet struck. There are no suspects in this case.
