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Press Release

Tampa Man Sentenced To Over 17 Years In Prison For Possessing A Firearm And Committing Armed Robbery While On Federal Supervised Release

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Middle District of Florida

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington has sentenced Jutaurio Preshae Clemons (39, Tampa) to 17 years and 4 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and for violating supervised release. The court also ordered Clemons to forfeit a Glock model 30, 45 Auto semi-automatic pistol and assorted ammunition. Clemons pleaded guilty to the felon in possession charge on October 15, 2024, and, following a hearing on April 29, 2025, the court found Clemons in violation of his supervised release. 

According to court documents and evidence presented at the violation hearing, Clemons was sentenced to federal prison in 2009 for conspiracy to possess five kilograms or more of cocaine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. After he served his prison sentence, and while he was on federal supervised release, the State of Florida issued an arrest warrant for Clemons for an attempted murder and robbery alleged to have occurred on August 14, 2022. When a United States Marshals Service fugitive task force found Clemons to arrest him on August 29, 2022, he was carrying a firearm inside a holster. The firearm, a Glock semi-automatic pistol, was loaded with four rounds of ammunition.

Evidence presented during the violation of supervised release hearing proved that on August 14, 2022, Clemons, while brandishing a firearm, sneaked up on a man as he was about to enter the front door of his residence and shot him eight times. Clemons then dragged the victim from the front of his residence, took his cellphone, and fled the scene. The victim, who had gunshot wounds to his left hand, left arm, right clavicle, right ear, chest, and upper torso, survived but required several surgeries to repair the gunshot wounds and a broken arm. The shooting was captured on home security cameras, and the victim identified Clemons as the shooter.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the United States Marshals Service, the Temple Terrace Police Department, and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Maria Guzman and Michael Sinacore. 

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. 

Updated May 6, 2025

Topics
Project Safe Neighborhoods
Firearms Offenses