Tampa: Two killed in Citibank campus shooting

A major banking operation in suburban Tampa paused on Wednesday following a shooting that left two people dead. The incident occurred at the Citibank business complex, a sprawling site that employs thousands of workers across four three-story buildings.

Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office officials confirmed the deaths of a suspect and one other individual. They stated it was not immediately known if others were injured. Sheriff Chad Chronister described the event as a targeted incident in a post on the social platform X. His office added that they responded to an active threat and were in the process of clearing the buildings.

More than 360 deputies swarmed the campus to secure the area. Officers conducted an exhaustive floor-by-floor search of the structures. Radio traffic from responding units described finding employees sheltering in locked rooms and closets. Teams carefully escorted these workers out of the buildings and the parking garage.

Visuals from the scene showed long lines of workers streaming out of the office complexes. Citigroup released a statement saying the company was aware of the incident and was cooperating with authorities. The bank did not provide further details on the status of its employees at the time of the report.

Family members of those inside the complex shared their experiences with reporters. Doug Merritt said he was startled when his son called from the campus. The son told him he had fled after hearing gunshots and was very close to the source of the noise. Merritt said his son left his belongings behind to escape the area.

Merritt noted that he did not know if his son was safe for about an hour. He struggled to maintain contact due to a bad internet connection. He said he was upset while waiting for confirmation that his son had reached a safe location.