On June 20, deputies from the Sumter County Sheriff’s office were present at a Father’s Day event happening in Royal. A little before 8 p.m., Raphael Tyree Thomas, of the Tampa Bay Area, pulled out a handgun after encountering someone else from the same area and shot it in the direction of the crowd. About ten people were injured (no children), and one person was killed, Cornecia Smikle.
Thomas tried to flee the scene and ran towards Bethel Church. After trying to unsuccessfully hide the weapon in an occupied vehicle, he himself hid underneath the car with the weapon. Deputies quickly found him, though, and detained him.
The Sumter County Sheriff’s office ran a criminal background on him, which showed that on March 30, 2017 Thomas was convicted of robbery with a firearm in Hillsborough County. The Sumter County Sheriff’s office is still investigating into the matter, so there may be more information to come.
