Neighbors' Dispute Led to Fatal Shooting, Cops Say

A dispute between neighbors ended Monday with two men dead and another behind bars.

According to the Sarasota Police Department, the incident that prompted the deadly shooting around 5:30 p.m. at 1763 33rd St. began to unfold when a man got into a dispute with two of his neighbors earlier in the day. That man, identified as Ronald E. Howard, 64, of 1757 33rd St., told others in the neighborhood he wanted to apologize, police wrote in an email to media.

Howard, police said, went to one of the victim’s homes, was seen walking out and closing the front door. He then reopened the door and was heard telling the men he is accused of later shooting, “God bless you.”

Howard then walked away, but witnesses said he returned a short time later. That time, police said, the two men were shot in the front yard of the home at 1763 33rd St.

Witnesses said Howard then sat down in a carport, which is where police found him a short time later. They also found a Smith & Wesson .38 revolver in the yard and saw blood on Howard’s hands.

Neighbors Carlos Suarez Jr., 83, of 1863 Country Meadow Drive, and Johnny Campbell, 65, of 1763 33rd St. both died as a result of gunshot wounds. Police say one of the men died outside the home while the other died a short time later at Sarasota Memorial Hospital.

Howard has been charged with two counts of premeditated first-degree murder. He was being held in the Sarasota County Jail without bond Tuesday. His arraignment date has been set for July 24, according to jail records.

Photo courtesy of the Sarasota County Jail