In the vibrant neighborhood of Ybor City, Tampa, a routine evening turned into chaos when a vehicle careened into the patio area of Bradley’s on 7th, a popular local spot. The tragic incident resulted in the loss of four lives and left 13 others injured, casting a somber shadow over the community.
Eyewitness Camaron Barker, who was on the patio at the time, described the scene as nothing short of a “war zone.” The shock and urgency of the moment were palpable as he and others scrambled to assist the victims trapped beneath the wreckage of stools and the car.
Surveillance footage from the area captures the harrowing moments leading up to the crash. In one clip, a man appears to narrowly escape further injury, hopping back into a nearby establishment after the vehicle seemed to run over his foot. The court documents reveal the horrific details of the crash, with at least two individuals being violently propelled into the air. One person struck the ceiling of Bradley’s outdoor seating area, while another was thrown against the exterior wall on the opposite side.
The aftermath of the crash has left families grieving and a community struggling to come to terms with the devastation. “My whole family is hurting,” said the sister of one of the victims, encapsulating the profound impact of this tragic event on the lives of those involved.
The pursuit of the suspect, 22-year-old Silas Sampson, started when police said he drove away from their attempted traffic stops and was street racing on I-275. Troopers with the Florida Highway Patrol tried a pit maneuver and they stopped pursuing due to the high pedestrian traffic in Ybor City.
Criminologist Alex Del Carmen said in the moment, law enforcement likely weighed what they knew about the suspect, but said they were faced with tough decisions, as they always are. 8 On Your Side asked what law enforcement should do when pit maneuvers don’t work.
“It really does depend on jurisdiction, gravity of the offense and whether or not the officers have the latitude in terms of space density and absence of innocent bystanders that could get hurt along the way. All of those things come into configuration as to what options the troopers may have in this case,” Del Carmen said.
8 On Your Side also asked if there was anything else police could’ve done to prevent the tragedy.
“I would say no. And I would say that these kinds of situations are awful, but they are lawful,” Del Carmen said. “At some point, you know, that equation has to be played out, which is do we stop it now at whatever it may cost in terms of human life, versus letting this person continue to evade the law and cause even more harm to other innocent people.”
Sampson has a pretrial detention hearing set for Thursday morning.
