Gunfire shattered the quiet of a neighborhood park next to an elementary school in Plant City when Wilmer Rosales, 22, opened fire on a man lured into a drug trap, federal prosecutors say. Rosales, also known as ‘DoubleU,’ is accused of shooting the victim, identified as G.U., multiple times with an AK-47 — once during the robbery, and again moments later when he circled back to the scene and fired into the dying man’s body as bystanders screamed.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida unsealed an indictment charging Rosales and accomplice Joel Sierra, 25, also of Plant City and known as ‘Jojo,’ with conspiring to traffic controlled substances and commit robbery. According to court documents, the two set up G.U. under the pretense of a drug deal, leading him to the park where armed co-conspirators waited in the shadows. Sierra grabbed the drugs and fled. When G.U. gave chase, Rosales opened fire from behind.
After the initial shooting, Rosales didn’t flee. Instead, he returned to the scene and fired more rounds into G.U. as people rushed to help. One woman threw herself over the victim’s body in a desperate attempt to shield him from further violence. The brazen attack unfolded just steps from a school, in a zone where federal law strictly prohibits firearm possession — a fact that adds another layer of charges to the case.
Rosales faces additional charges for possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon and for doing so in a school zone. For the murder charge alone, he could face life in federal prison or even the death penalty. Sierra, who allegedly stole the drugs during the ambush, faces up to 45 years behind bars on the conspiracy and robbery counts.
The indictment underscores the brutality of street-level drug violence creeping into public spaces once considered safe. The park, meant for children and families, became a crime scene soaked in blood and littered with shell casings. Investigators say the use of an AK-47 — a military-grade weapon — reflects the escalating danger of drug-related robberies in the region.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Natalie Hirt Adams. It was brought under Project Safe Neighborhoods, a federal initiative targeting violent offenders in high-crime areas. An indictment is not a conviction — Rosales and Sierra are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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