A Thursday night murder in Brandon is tied to drugs and a grow house packed with marijuana plants, according to Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. 

The stench of fresh marijuana filled the air around 1625 Bent Pine Way off Providence Road. Undercover deputies emptied the house of marijuana plants, laying them side by side on the front lawn. Deputies found Hanry Hernandez-Suarez, 24, murdered in the house. He suffered severe body trauma.

“People may ask why we focus on these grow houses. Well, this is the exact reason why, here’s one, in a very nice neighborhood that’s resulted in a violent homicide,” Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office detective Larry McKinnon said.

Neighbor Rick Gouse recalled, his only encounter with people who lived in the grow house, came when he and his wife were walking their small dogs and a pit bull came charging out of the house at them. He said two men wearing sunglasses and bandanas emerged and laughed. Gouse remembers they had words. Now he’s learned the place was a grow house and someone was murdered there.

McKinnon said the murder was drug related and not a random act. Multiple individuals went into the house. McKinnon explained there was a violent confrontation and an extremely violent murder.

“That don’t sit well with me at all, we like our home, we put a lot into it, it’s kind of disturbing,” Gouse said.

Neighbor Joseph Topor said he heard the pot was kept in the garage area.

“It’s pretty scary, especially right down the street. The cops and stuff last night helicopters, pretty pretty intense,” Topor added.

This is the 14th grow house the sheriff’s office has discovered in Hillsborough county so far this year.

“They bring in criminals into the neighborhood and often violent criminals,” McKinnon explained.

Detectives are relentlessly raiding grow houses. They put one out of business in Lutz Thursday morning. It resulted in the confiscation of 51 mature marijuana plants and one arrest. Acting on tips they raided six grow houses in January. They found out about the grow house on Bent Pine Way a little too late.

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