SWAT Arrests Suspect In Tampa Killings At Historic Florida Hotel

By Staff Reporter | Sep 06, 2014 08:42 AM EDT

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The extreme manhunt had concluded when a man who was reportedly responsible in Tampa killings of four people and the disappearance of a 4-year old boy was arrested as SWAT teams circled a historic Florida hotel on Friday.

The suspected man, Adam Matos, 28-year old had checked into the Floridan Palace Hotel using his own name and the authorities had to trick him out of his room and away from the autistic boy on the 18th floor of the historic building. He was suspected for four killings whose bodies were found amassed on the ground and decomposing. The bodies were discovered by the detectives a day earlier, some 45 miles away in the vicinity.

The Tampa killings' suspect, Adam Matos was also the suspect in the disappearance of the 4-year old autistic boy who was found with him at the hotel. Authorities also believed that the boy, Ismael Tristan Santisteban, was the suspect's son however the DNA test is still pending.

Adam Matos, the arrested suspect in Tampa killings, told the reporters while he was escorted to a police car outside the hotel, that he loved his son and is hoping that the boy is safe.  The suspect also denied the allegations on killing the victims or knowing who did. Authorities said that an autism specialist investigator was interviewing the boy; police were not sure whether he might have witnessed the killings.

As per the officials' statement, the arrested man, Adam Matos is the prime suspect in the four Tampa killings whose bodies were found in Hudson, some 45 miles away from the Floridan Hotel. Pasco County deputies waned to release the identities of the victims due to the unresolved conclusion of the autopsies by the medical examiner.

A search warrant obtained by The Tampa Tribune and the Tampa Bay Times lists the victims as Megan Brown, 27-years old; her parents, Margaret and Greg Brown, both 52-years old; and a man named Nicholas Leonard. All recently lived in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, as did the suspect. As per the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Browns owned a Lehigh Valley kennel but lately lost its license for hiring a man who had once been found guilty of animal cruelty at another kennel. The daughter, Megan allegedly dated Adam Matos.

Authorities released little information about the precise evidences that ties Adam Matos as the suspect in the Tampa killings. Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco stated that Adam had been seen recently in the Hudson area and quickly became a suspect.

Pennsylvania court records show that the arrested suspect had been under arrest several times for harassment, theft, burglary, trespassing, assault and DUI. He pleaded guilty for some charges and others have been dismissed.

According to Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco, the arrested suspect in Tampa killings will face an aggravated assault charge related to the incident about the boy's disappearance on August 28 in a Hillsborough County court on Saturday.

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