TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Police Department said it has made an arrest in the murder of a 34-year-old man whose body was found in a vacant lot earlier this month.
TPD said it has arrested a 17-year-old for the murder of James McClendon.
On Dec. 9, TPD said a missing person report had been filed for McClendon, and police found his rental vehicle abandoned in the 3500 block of East 27th Avenue.
Two days later, TPD said investigators found McClendon’s body in an empty lot.
Detectives determined McClendon drove to a gas station in the 2900 block of N. 50th Street earlier in the evening on Dec. 9. and picked up the 17-year-old suspect.
Police searched the 17-year-old’s home and found evidence, including a 9mm shell casing linking the 17-year-old to the murder.
The suspect was arrested around 2 p.m. on Dec. 23 and taken to a juvenile assessment center
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