Police Seek Help Finding Shooting Suspect

Tarpon Springs Police are asking for help finding a suspect who shot a man during an attempted robbery Saturday evening.

Around 9:30 p.m., a 19 year-old man and a 16 year-old girl were walking on the sidewalk near 16 South Walton Ave. when a man wearing a hood came out of the an unlit wooded area with a gun, according to Tarpon Springs Police Capt. Jeff Young.

The suspect made the couple move off the sidewalk. The 19 year-old man tried to take the suspect's gun, but the suspect shot him in the left side during a struggle. Young says the suspect ran east, back into the woods.

A Bayflight Medical Helicopter airlifted the man to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg. His condition has not been released. Young says he was shot in the upper left side of his body.

Tarpon Springs Police K-9 Officers searched the area but could not find the suspect. Officers and detectives continued to search the area into the late evening.

The suspect is described as-

• A hispanic male
• In early 30s
• 130 to 150 lbs.
• He was wearing a gray or blue colored hoodie.

If you have information that can help investigators, call Tarpon Springs Police Detectives at (727) 938-2840.