20-year-old Palmetto man charged on three counts
The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) has arrested two individuals on charges related to a shooting that occurred at Twin Lakes Park on Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024, the has agency announced.
Carlos Romero-Tomas, 20, of 405 15th St. W., Apartment B, in Palmetto, was arrested on Feb. 6, a news release said. Previously, on Jan. 23, a Bradenton juvenile was arrested by the Sheriff’s Office’s Fugitive Apprehension Unit, with the assistance of the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, the release added.
Romero-Tomas has been charged with Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Discharging a Firearm in Public, and Giving False Information Concerning the Commission of a Crime, the release noted.
His Sheriff’s Office Corrections Division record shows that he is being held without bond on the aggravated assault charge, while the bond was set at $1,000 on the weapon firing count, and $500 in bond was set for the false report charge.
His arraignment is scheduled for March 28, that document adds.
The juvenile was charged with Aggravated Battery, Discharging a Firearm in Public, Carrying a Concealed Weapon and Armed Trespass, the news release added.
During the November incident, which occurred at a party held after hours at Twin Lakes Park on Clark Road in Sarasota, a 17-year-old male was shot; he died from his injuries, the initial Sheriff’s Office news release pointed out.
A second person who was shot was treated for his injuries, the report added.
Twin Lakes Park is home to a variety of athletic facilities. It is open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., its webpage says.
“Additional charges are pending,” the Feb. 7 news release pointed out.
“This is still considered an open and active investigation,” the release explained. “Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to call the Criminal Investigation Section at 941-861-4900 or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers by calling 941-366-TIPS (8477) or going online at www.crimestoppers.com.
Surveillance video aids detectives in investigation
The Probable Cause Affidavit for Romero-Tomas says that when deputies responded to Twin Lakes Park shortly after 1 a.m. on Nov. 3, 2024, they found “the remnants of a party along with two injured males lying on the ground.”
One of the victims, Eric Santana, was transported to Sarasota Memorial Hospital (SMH) “with gunshot wounds to his chest and stomach,” the affidavit adds. He died at 1:32 a.m. on Nov. 3 as a result of the injuries, the affidavit says.
Romero-Tomas, the second victim, “was in critical condition but survived his injuries,” the affidavit continues.
“Through initial interviews,” the affidavit says, “[I]t was determined a party involving approximately 40 people occurred [in the Twin Lakes parking lot].”
Officers canvassing the scene found a .45-caliber, 1911 pistol in an empty dumpster near the spot where Santana had fallen, the affidavit adds. Two 9mm and seven .45-caliber shell casings were recovered at the scene, it says.
Video viewed by Sheriff’s Office personnel “showed Romero-Tomas involved in an altercation during which he pulled a gun from his waistband,” the affidavit points out. However, the video panned away at the same time that the audio captured “multiple gunshots” being fired.
A second male, who was dressed in what the affidavit described as “a ‘Ghostbusters’ jumpsuit,” later was identified as Jonathan “Johnny” Vivar; he also was seen in the video “firing a handgun in the direction of Romero-Tomas and Santana,” the affidavit continues.
The detective who wrote the affidavit narrative explained that he “conducted a sworn audio recorded interview at SMH with Romero-Tomas,” who “insisted he did not have a firearm in his possession at any time [at the park] and there was no reason for him to have gunpowder residue on his hands.”
During a second interview, the affidavit continues, Romero-Tomas admitted that he was in possession of a firearm during the Nov. 3 incident and that he shot the firearm, but the two rounds went into the ground.
When shown the video that officers had reviewed, the affidavit notes, Romero-Tomas told the detective that he had “found a gun on the ground, picked it up, pointed it at the ground and fired two shots into the ground.”
However, the affidavit says, further investigation — including the execution of a search warrant for access to Romero-Tomas’ cell phone — led to the discovery of a photo of a Taurus PT 1911 firearm in a “digital download” from that phone. The phone was in a bag collected at the scene, the affidavit points out.
Further, the Forensic Identification Unit of the Sheriff’s Office was able to confirm that latent fingerprints on the magazine of the 1911 weapon recovered from the dumpster matched Romero-Tomas’ left thumb, the affidavit says. All of that information made it clear that “Romero-Tomas was in possession of [that 1911] gun prior to the shooting,” the affidavit adds.
A Sarasota News Leader review of the records maintained by the Office of the Sarasota County Clerk of the Circuit Court and County Comptroller found no prior charges for Romero-Tomas in Sarasota County.