Sheriff: 4 arrested in deadly Largo drug deal: ‘You play with fire, you’re going to get burned’
LARGO, Fla. - Four men are facing first-degree murder charges in the shooting death of a 20-year-old Jacksonville man in April at a Largo business center.
According to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to shots fired at the All American Business Center, located at 8300 Ulmerton Road on April 29.
When deputies arrived, they saw Brent Alley, 22, lying in the parking lot in front of unit 110. He had been shot once in the abdomen.
Detectives say Alley rented a Porsche in Jacksonville on April 29, to travel to Largo with Kyle Foster, 22, to buy about $40,000 worth of high-grade marijuana from Joshua Ashley.
However, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri says instead of getting the marijuana to sell to Alley, Ashley, Tyaire Turner, Terrell Jackson, and Scott Laracuente developed a plan to rob Alley and not sell him any marijuana.
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According to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, all four suspects are involved in drugs and have prior arrest records.
Gualtieri said Turner also had been convicted of robbery with a firearm in New York.
According to PCSO, Laracuente was living at the All American Business Complex.
Detectives say Alley had a drug-dealing relationship with Ashley that went back at least one year.
Gualtieri added that Ashley was Alley’s source of supply for marijuana.
In anticipation of Alley’s arrival, detectives say Ashely and Jackson got a Glock 9mm handgun that belonged to Ashley for the planned robbery.
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After the pair got the handgun, while Alley and Foster were driving down from Jacksonville, Jackson, Ashley, Laracuente and Turner met at Laracuente’s residence to develop their plan on how they were going to rob Alley.
Patrol vehicles outside a fatal shooting in Largo.
According to Gualtieri, the plan was for Turner to hide in the stairwell with the gun Ashley and Jackson had secured, threaten Alley and take his bag with the $40,000 in cash.
Gualtieri says each suspect had a role in the planned robbery and Alley and Foster had no idea they were being set up.
He says the pair arrived around 5:45 p.m. and went inside the unit at the business complex. Detectives say Ashley, Jackson and Laracuente were at the residence while, unbeknownst to Alley and Foster, Turner was hiding in the stairwell with the gun.
According to Gualtieri, Alley had $40,000 in cash in a bag with him, but when he saw the three men inside he grew concerned and went back out to his car, took the money out of the bag and put it in the Porsche. While at his car, Alley grabbed a gun and went back inside armed and with an empty bag.
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According to PCSO, when the men sat down to eat, Turner, who was wearing a mask, emerged from his hiding place and shot Alley.
Gualtieri says Alley ran outside screaming, laid down, and died in the parking lot.
Men charged with first-degree murder in death of 20-year-old Jacksonville man.
"It’s really sad to watch a 20-year-old kid lay down in a parking lot and die, but when you play with fire you’re going to get burned and sometimes you get killed," Gualtieri said.
Deputies say Jackson, Turner and Laracuente fled in a vehicle and Ashley ran away on foot.
According to PCSO, investigators found the $40,000 in the Porsche.
Gualtieri said after fleeing the scene, Turner was dropped off at his home in St. Petersburg while Jackson and Laracuente left their getaway vehicle, a Dodge Challenger Hellcat, in a Sarasota restaurant parking lot.
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Deputies say Laracuente boarded a Greyhound bus bound for Las Vegas, while Ashley and Jackson fled the state in a vehicle and headed to Los Angeles, CA. They took an off-route and arrived on May 3. PCSO detectives went to L.A. to follow them and then tracked them to Las Vegas on May 5.
Detectives then went to Las Vegas and located all four suspects at the Mandalay Bay hotel and arrested them.
Crime scene tape and law enforcement vehicles at murder scene.
According to investigators, after the murder, Turner fled by car to northern Virginia. PCSO and US Marshals located Turner and arrested him.
They were all taken to the Pinellas County Jail and indicted on first-degree murder charges.
"People talk about drug dealing being a victimless crime and it’s not. This is evidence how people, or in this case, a 20-year-old kid die over what some people call a victimless crime of drug dealing. It’s not a victimless crime. It’s a crime of violence and you got a whole bunch of people that have a history of engaging in this type of activity who, unfortunately, are out there doing it every day," stated Gualtieri.
According to PCSO, Foster, who witnessed the murder is back in Jacksonville and Gualtieri said a decision has not been made on whether he will face charges.
The murder is still under investigation.