Arrest Made in Bradenton 'Shootout'

BRADENTON, FL – A 24-year-old man faces felony murder charges after the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office connected him to a Wednesday afternoon shooting in Bradenton.

According to the sheriff’s office, Frederick Dinel Smith was the accomplice of the shooting victim that was found dead inside a SUV. Smith, deputies say, fled the crime scene after a “shootout” and was located in Sarasota this morning.

Smith now faces second-degree felony murder charges because deputies say he was in the process of committing a crime when the man he was with, Kenye Cooper, 26, was shot and killed.

The incident unfolded 2:40 p.m. at 1027 61st Ave. Drive E. Deputies say Napoleon Hale, 37, and Brett Simmons, 23, were playing video games inside the home when Smith and Cooper are accused of coming to the home to demand money.

“That led to physical fighting and multiple shots being fired inside and outside the residence,” a media release stated.

When deputies responded to the scene of the crime, they found Cooper dead in the back seat of a Mazda SUV parked several houses down.

The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with additional information about the crime is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 941-747–3011 or Crime Stoppers at 866-634-TIPS.

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