Sheriff: Man shot in Bradenton parking lot, dumped on side of the road. 1 arrested.
CORRECTION: The person shot dead and found in Palmetto was a man, sheriff’s officials said. An earlier version of this story misidentified the victim.
A man is facing murder charges after the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office says he shot a 33-year-old man dead and dumped his body by a road near the Terra Ceia Aquatic Preserve and the Sunshine Skyway bridge.
The sheriff’s office is not yet identifying the victim, citing Florida’s Marsy’s Law.
The suspect is Reuben Pioquinto, 29, Sheriff Rick Wells said at a 10:30 a.m. press conference.
Detectives are still working to confirm the relationship between the Pioquinto and the other man, sheriff’s office spokesman Randy Warren said earlier Monday.
The two men and another person went out for a drive at about 8 p.m. Wednesday when the victim and suspect began to argue, the witness told detectives.
When they stopped at the Circle K, 904 30th Ave. E., Bradenton, Pioquinto shot the other man in the vehicle, Warren said in a news release.
The victim was found dead on the side of the road on 77th St E, in Palmetto.
Pioquinto and the passenger drove back to their home at in the 300 block of 21st Avenue West in Bradenton, and Pioquinto passed out on the couch. But family members in the home called 911 at about 3:40 a.m. after the witness told them what happened earlier that night.
They all came out of the home, leaving the suspect alone inside as deputies surrounded the house and called out tot he suspect for him to surrender.
Pioquinto came out of the home before the SWAT team arrived and was taken into custody.
He had not yet been booked into the Manatee County jail by mid-morning Thursday, after being questioned by detectives.
For more details from the 10:30 a.m. sheriff’s press conference, click here.
This story was originally published January 19, 2022 at 10:42 AM.
