Ellenton man sentenced after drive-by shooting left man paralyzed, prosecutors say
A 21-year-old Ellenton man was sentenced to life in prison for ambushing a man in a drive-by shooting that left him partially paralyzed, the State Attorney’s Office announced.
Carlos Henry-Antonio Herrera and Akeleis Dumbar, 25, of Sarasota, were sentenced Friday after being convicted of attempted first-degree murder with a firearm in the 2022 drive-by shooting of Jamari Williams, prosecutors said.
In addition to attempted murder, court records show the pair were also found guilty during their November trial of discharging a firearm from a vehicle within 1,000 feet of a person, shooting into an occupied vehicle and dwelling and aggravated battery with a firearm causing great bodily harm. Dumbar was also convicted of witness tampering.
Under Florida law, attempted first-degree murder with a firearm and aggravated battery with a firearm carry a minimum mandatory sentence of 25 years in prison.
On Nov. 23, 2022, prosecutors said Herrera and Dumbar entered Williams’ neighborhood through a broken resident’s gate, parked in front of his townhome and waited for more than 40 minutes before pulling up beside him and opening fire as he arrived home.
Seventeen bullets struck Williams inside his car before the shooters sped away, investigators said.
Deputies responding to the Sarasota apartment complex at around 3 a.m. said they found Williams unconscious in the driver’s seat of his vehicle. Paramedics rushed him to Sarasota Memorial Hospital, where doctors worked to repair severe injuries to his liver, small bowel and brain, according to the State Attorney’s Office.
Williams survived but remains permanently paralyzed on his right side, prosecutors said.
Investigators later uncovered evidence suggesting the shooting may have been financially motivated, including text messages exchanged between Herrera and Dumbar after the attack, according to an arrest report.
Rental car used in Sarasota drive-by, investigators say
The Bradenton Herald previously reported that detectives used Ring doorbell footage to help identify Herrera as the shooter. Surveillance video captured a white Jeep Liberty pulling up next to Williams’ silver Chrysler 300 in the apartment complex parking lot before shots were fired and the Jeep fled the area, according to an arrest report.
Deputies tracked the Jeep’s license plate to an Enterprise rental car agency, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office said. The agency’s managers told investigators the car had been rented by a woman but had not been returned. When deputies contacted her, she told detectives she had rented the Jeep for Herrera but did not know where it was, according to the sheriff’s office.
Forensic analysis later linked Herrera to the vehicle when the Jeep was returned to Enterprise, investigators said. Detectives say his fingerprints were found on the windows, frame and license plate and his DNA was discovered on a 9 mm bullet casing recovered from the crime scene.
In an interview with investigators, Herrera reportedly denied being in Sarasota County at the time of the shooting or having any relationship with the woman who rented the car from Enterprise.
During the investigation, detectives obtained a search warrant for Herrera’s cell phone, which contained over 50 communications including voice calls, messages, photos and FaceTime calls with a T-Mobile number traced back to Dumbar, according to an arrest report.
Detectives say that in one of these conversations, on Nov. 24, 2022, Dumbar appeared aggravated because he, “wants his money.” Herrera responded that he was waiting to hear if Williams died, because “if he does they will be paid more,” according to the arrest report.
Herrera then told Dumbar that an associate was bringing them their money and that he would get his “kut,” investigators said. A text message conversation from a few hours later confirmed both had received their payment in connection to the shooting, according to detectives.
Shooter’s girlfriend also faces charges, prosecutors say
The Bradenton Herald previously reported that Herrera’s girlfriend, 23-year-old Alexanderia Lisa Sollock, was also arrested in connection to Williams’ shooting. Court records show the Ellenton woman, charged with accessory after the fact, is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday for a plea hearing.
Sollock is accused of being aware of Herrera’s involvement in the shooting and helping protect him from arrest.
Two days after the shooting, detectives located Herrera at a motel on Tamiami Trail and began surveillance. They say they observed Sollock arriving in her vehicle, picking Herrera up and driving him back to their Ellenton home.
When detectives executed a search warrant, they say Sollock refused to cooperate and requested a lawyer.
Inside the home, investigators say they found a safe containing a 9mm handgun and ammunition matching the brand of bullet casings found at the crime scene. Herrera’s DNA was later found on both the gun and the ammunition, according to authorities.
A search of Sollock’s phone revealed calls and texts between her and Herrera in the minutes after the shooting, investigators said.
Traffic monitoring devices and cell phone data confirmed Sollock drove to Sarasota to pick up Herrera immediately after the shooting, investigators said.
In December 2022, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office charged Herrera with first-degree attempted murder and discharging a firearm from a vehicle. Herrera was already being held at the Sarasota County Correctional Facility on charges of fleeing police, drug trafficking and drug possession, the Bradenton Herald previously reported.
Assistant State Attorney Megan Leaf, the lead prosecutor in the case, said the sentencing delivered justice for Williams and his family.
“The strength and resiliency of Jamari Williams and his family is unparalleled,” Leaf said in a statement. “While no amount of time will ever fully restore Mr. Williams, the jury’s verdict and the court’s sentence provided the justice he and his family deserved.”
