HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — A suspect in Hillsborough County fatally shot his parents and injured a deputy before he was killed during a shootout with deputies.
The suspect was identified as 19-year-old Christos Alexander Themelis Jr.
The parents were identified as Christos Themelis, 51, and Rebecca Ann Themelis, 48.
The incident began on Saturday at 11:09 p.m. when Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) deputies responded to the 14000 block of Cactus Wren Place in Tampa in response to a shooting.
The caller, Alexander’s mother, stated her husband had just been shot. While on the phone with the HCSO dispatch center, several more shots were fired.
When deputies arrived, they saw the mother and Alexander outside of the home. Alexander then shot his mother in the back of the head and began firing toward deputies, according to Sheriff’s Office officials.
Five deputies returned fire, causing Alexander to retreat into his home.
Deputy Shane McGough was shot in the leg during the exchange, Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister said.
The suspect then barricaded himself in the home. HCSO's SWAT Team, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team, and Crisis Negotiation Team were called to assist. When they went inside the home, they found the father's body and Alexander, who was found dead in one of the rooms in the home.
"The monster we encountered this evening is responsible for not only injuring our deputy but also killing his own mother and father," said Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister. "Our deputies responded to a chaotic scene and immediately put themselves in harm's way to protect our community. Without our deputy's quick and skillful response, an entire neighborhood would have been in danger."
Watch Deputy McGough's bodycam video provided by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office of the incident below.
The five deputies involved in the incident were:
- Deputy Shane McGough, 26; two years of service.
- Deputy Brandon Schade, 26; one year of service.
- Deputy Richard Ziegler, 33; nine years of service.
- Deputy Bjar Atkins, 38; 13 years of service.
- Deputy Ciara Moncada, 34; two years of service.
McGough underwent "successful" surgery on Sunday to remove the bullet and insert a rod in his leg to help the tibia bone, which was fractured, Chronister said. McGough is looking at a three-month recovery period, the sheriff added.
None of the deputies involved have any prior uses of deadly force, officials said.
The son lived with his mother and father. Since 2021, the Sheriff’s Office has responded to at least 10 calls at the home. Some of them were mental health calls for service, including violence against his own parents, Chronister said.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will be investigating the shooting in accordance with HCSO policy.
Hurricane Helene brought unprecedented storm surge to areas of Tampa Bay.
