A suspect is in custody, following an armed robbery and SWAT Team standoff in New Tampa.
According to the Tampa Police Department (TPD), around 8 p.m. on July 16, James Jackson Taylor, 21, of the Portofino Apartments (located off New Tampa Blvd.), walked into the CVS Pharmacy at the intersection of New Tampa Blvd. and Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. Taylor reportedly put on a mask and white gloves and approached the pharmacy counter with a handgun, demanding Oxycodone pills.
TPD reports that the staff was not meeting Jackson’s demands quickly enough, so he fired two shots into the ceiling as he ran to the front door. Jackson fled in a red Mitsubishi Outlander.
The TPD report says that officers interviewed witnesses at the CVS and were able to track Jackson down at his apartment using his vehicle description. Officers negotiated with Jackson for two and a half hours. During the negotiation, during Jackson threatened to harm himself, so a TPD SWAT team was called to the scene.
When Jackson opened the door, he refused to show his hands or come out of the apartment, so officers used a Taser to subdue him and take him into custody. Officers found the gun from the robbery, the clothing Jackson was wearing and the stolen pills in the apartment.
Jackson is being held without bond at the Hillsborough County Jail, charged with armed robbery of less than $300 and discharging a firearm.
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