Man allegedly fired 23 shots after confrontation in Homestead district

HOMESTEAD, Florida. – A Homestead man was arrested after police say he fired 23 shots from multiple guns in a residential area early Sunday morning, authorities confirmed Tuesday.

Homestead police said officers were dispatched to a neighborhood in Homestead after a ShotSpotter activation detected a total of 23 gunshots. The location of the neighborhood was redacted in the publicly released arrest report.

When they arrived, police said they discovered 18 bullet casings in a parking lot and found damage to the exterior walls and windows of several apartments, including bullet holes in the windows as well as in the interior walls and furniture.

According to investigators, surveillance camera footage showed the suspect, whom they identified as 22-year-old Tony Darnell Evans, “recklessly displaying two semi-automatic firearms on the second floor of a building.”

According to police, Evans was then observed descending to the first floor and approaching the victim. Two pistols were visible in the front pockets of his pants.

Shortly thereafter, an argument broke out between the two in the yard, which escalated when Evans hit the victim in the head with the butt of a gun, according to police, causing a laceration to the victim's forehead.

Investigators said surveillance camera footage showed Evans running into his apartment with both weapons in his hand.

Authorities said officers took photo lines and both the victim and a witness positively identified Evans as the suspect involved in the incident and provided sworn written statements to Homestead police.

A Miami-Dade Police Department special operations team executed a search warrant at Evans' apartment, where he was found and arrested, the report said.

Inside the home, officers found four semi-automatic firearms, a .223 rifle, a 50-round drum, a 100-round drum, three .223-round magazines, a .223 bullet, nine 9mm bullets, two extended magazines and four 9mm magazines. Investigators said all items were seized as evidence.

Evans was subsequently taken to the Homestead Police Department for questioning but refused to speak with officers, the report said.

Jail records show he is charged with one count each of aggravated assault with a firearm or deadly weapon and improper display of a weapon or firearm.

As of Tuesday, Evans has been held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, where his bail has not yet been determined.