Detectives Investigating Separate Shootings At Hookah Lounges

TAMPA, FL — The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office is seeking help to identify a man believed to be involved in a shooting outside a hookah lounge on Sunday.

At 3:40 a.m. on March 21, a person was seated in his vehicle outside the Sky Hookah Lounge, 7748 Hillsborough Ave., where a party was underway. According to the victim, a man approached him with a gun and shot at his vehicle. The man quickly fled the area immediately after the shooting.

The victim was transported to a local hospital and treated for gunshot wounds.

The shooter, seen on surveillance cameras outside the lounge, is described as a white Hispanic male who was last seen wearing a red T-shirt, camouflage pants and carrying a men’s satchel. He is believed to have a half sleeve tattoo on his lower right arm.

“As we work through the exact cause of this shooting, our detectives are hopeful that surveillance video of the suspect will help to identify and locate him as quickly as possible,” said Sheriff Chad Chronister. “We are asking anyone who recognizes this individual to call the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office at 813-247-8200.”

In the meantime, Tampa police are continuing to investigate a shooting at the Flow Hookah Lounge in Tampa Saturday morning that left one man dead.

According to police, a fight broke out inside the lounge at 2312 W. Waters Ave. around 6 a.m. and security guards at the lounge escorted one man out.

Tampa police said the man then retrieved a gun from his vehicle and started shooting at the guards.

The security guards fired back, striking the man. He was taken to the hospital where he died.