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Unknown sniper's shot strikes deputy's cruiser

While the officer sits in the car during a traffic stop, a bullet pierces the trunk. No one is injured.

By KEVIN GRAHAM
Published August 3, 2005

TAMPA - Someone fired a single bullet into the trunk of a Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office patrol car Tuesday morning as a deputy sat behind the wheel, writing a ticket in a busy Carrollwood neighborhood.

No one was injured, and detectives don't know who fired the weapon or from where, said sheriff's spokeswoman Detective Lisa Haber.

About 8:30 a.m., Deputy Timothy Craig conducted a routine traffic stop along Orange Grove Drive, just south of W Fletcher Avenue. He pulled over Gladys Porrata for driving with an expired tag.

Haber said that six to seven minutes into the traffic stop, Deputy Craig heard a loud noise and felt his car "shake." He got out and noticed the bullet hole in the right passenger side of the trunk, just below the vehicle's identification number.

No vehicles passed the deputy during the traffic stop and Haber said there was no reason to think Craig was a target for any specific reason.

Craig's car was facing south along Orange Grove Drive, between Waterbridge and Heards Ferry drives. Based on a preliminary investigation, detectives said the bullet came from the north, toward Fletcher Avenue. That area includes homes and a retention pond surrounded by some light woods. Investigators walked shoulder to shoulder, scanning the roadway for evidence. A canine unit and a sheriff's helicopter also surveyed the area.

"This is a very busy intersection," said Haber.

It sits a couple of blocks east of Dale Mabry Highway. On the corner are the Lake Ellen Walk townhomes.

Deputies blocked off a part of the street for more than four hours Tuesday morning, allowing limited access into the townhomes. Detectives discussed shutting down a part of the street again Tuesday night to use a laser at the scene to help in determining the trajectory of the bullet into the marked Ford Crown Victoria. Haber said detectives don't know yet what type of weapon was fired, but they did recover some material from inside Craig's trunk that will be turned over to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for analysis.

Haber said there are some high-powered rifles that could project a bullet for up to 2 miles if nothing is in the way to stop it.

Deputy Craig, with the Sheriff's Office since 1994, declined to talk with reporters at the scene. Porrata could not be reached for comment.

Even after the shooting, Haber said, Craig still gave Porrata a ticket.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the Sheriff's Office at (813) 247-8200 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-873-8477.

Times staff writer Jackie Ripley contributed to this report. Kevin Graham can be reached at 813 226-3433 or kgraham@sptimes.com

[Last modified August 3, 2005, 00:35:13]