BRADENTON, Fla. — Police are on the scene after officer shot and kiled a man during a drug raid that happened Tuesday morning in Bradenton.
Family members and neighbors tell Tampa Bay 28 reporter Jada Williams 56-year-old William "Tyrone" Bell was shot and killed.
WATCH: 'They didn't give him a chance': Bradenton officer kills man family says was partially paralyzed during raid
Williams confirmed from Bradenton Police Department that its narcotics unit had a search warrant to go inside the home in the 300 block of 10th Avenue West on March 10. When inside the home, police said they noticed a closed door of a room where "activity" was happening.
"It was a high risk search warrant, meaning we had information that at least one person inside the home was a convicted felon and there was at least one gun in the home," said Bradenton Police spokesperson Meredith Censullo.
Censullo said the SWAT team noticed movement inside the home as they approached and slowed down. Once inside, they encountered a room near the entrance they could not see into.
"As they attempted to enter that room, they saw a person inside the room with a gun," Censullo said. "There were commands given to that person. The person did not comply with those commands, and one of our officers fired shots."
A SWAT medic on scene immediately provided aid, but Bell did not survive.
Two other people were also inside the duplex, according to BPD. They were not shot and not injured. One was treated by EMS for distress but was not injured. No officers were injured.
Bell's brother, William "James" Bell, told Jada Williams his brother was partially paralyzed and could not get to the door quickly.
"They came here to serve a warrant, a drug warrant, and he didn't open the door fast enough," James Bell said. "He [is] partially paralyzed so he couldn't get to the door fast, and they being that they served a warrant, they should have known this."
James Bell said officers shot flash bangs through the window before firing.
"They shot flash bangs up through the window," James Bell said. "Instead of letting him get up and open the door like he would have, they shot him. They just shot through the house, four shots. They shot him four times."
James Bell said he believes someone on scene told officers his brother was handicapped before they fired.
"It was somebody here giving him a running commentary that he was handicapped and he was going to make it to the door eventually," James Bell said. "They didn't give him a chance, and now he's laying in there dead."
James Bell said while he does not justify what his brother may have been doing, he believes Tyrone deserved due process.
"I mean, no matter what he was doing, and I don't justify what he was doing, it's still such a thing as due process. This is America. He never got that chance," James Bell said. "I'd rather him be in jail than be there, laying on that cold floor. Me never able to speak to him again."
James Bell said he was not allowed past the police tape to see his brother.
"There is no reason my brother should be laying in the lifeless in jail, I can accept," James Bell said.
He says that he has already retained a lawyer.
"I mean, no matter what he did, he deserved to be alive," James Bell said. "They need to give him a chance to open a door."
A neighbor, Chaquanda Muhammad said SWAT came down the road, busted the windows out, and asked 52-year-old Tyrone Bell to come out of the home.
"They sent in two warning shots to warn him and a flash bomb," Muhammad recalled about what happened to Bell. "Then they sent in two more shots when he didn't move fast enough. They said, 'He's not moving fast enough,' after they sent the first two shots. They said, 'He's not moving fast enough.' The second two shots went off, and that's when they came back out and said, 'He's shot.'"
Muhammad continued, "Everybody's outside panicking, saying, 'He's half paralyzed. That's why he didn't move fast enough. That's why he didn't move fast enough.' So everybody's freaking out. I'm freaking out because I'm his neighbor. I go down there and check on him. I personally know he has seizures."
Muhammad told Tampa Bay 28 she had known the man who BPD killed for about two years and he was paralyzed, and his "health condition is really bad."
"He's disabled. So for them to just, you know, didn't give him a chance to get up out of the bed and just send shots without giving him a chance, you know. That's kind of cruel," she said.
Muhammad said he was a "good man" and they would hangout and laugh together.
"I know once I go behind my doors, I'm gonna bawl out like a baby because I witnessed it all."
Censullo said the department does not often see this outcome when serving narcotics warrants.
"We do a lot of these narcotic search warrants and they don't have this outcome," Censullo said. "We have not had an officer involved shooting in many years. However, this will be investigated fully and the outcome of that investigation will be provided by FDLE."
Police say the officer who fired the shots is back at the station and is upset. That officer's name has not been released.
Manatee County Sheriff's Office is leading the investigation into the fatal shooting involving BPD police. FDLE is also assisting with the investigation as part of officer-involved shooting protocol.
According to Bradenton Police Department, the area has narcotic activity.
This is a developing story. Tampa Bay 28 will provide more details as they become available.
Share Your Story with Jada
Jada Williams is focused on the issues that matter most to people in who live in Tampa and West Hillsborough County. From downtown Tampa to Town ‘n’ Country and Westcase, Jada works to bring you updates and solutions on everything from crime to infrastructure. Reach out to Jada below with your concerns for your neighborhood.
.
Multiple Hillsborough County schools are closing down in 2027
Tampa Bay 28 reporter Jada Williams has the latest on how Hillsborough County Public Schools is planning major student reassignments and school closures for the 2027-28 school year.
