'Bonnie and Clyde' crime spree ends in the Panhandle with 1 killed, 1 in custody
- Pair sought for crimes in four states shot in a hail of gunfire
- Blake Fitzgerald dead; Brittany Harper wounded
By Carol Robinson | crobinson@al.com The Birmingham News Email the author | Follow on Twitter on February 05, 2016 at 12:42 AM, updated February 05, 2016 at 2:27 PM
Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties, FL
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series Missouri Bonnie & Clyde Couple
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A Missouri couple sought for crimes in four states was shot in a hail of gunfire in the Florida Panhandle early today. Blake Fitzgerald was killed; Brittany Harper was wounded, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.
The shooting followed a massive manhunt that started in Escambia County and ended in Santa Rosa County. There was a car chase, then a foot chase, and another car chase. A barrage of gunfire erupted near the intersection of Garcon Point Road and Hammock Trace in Milton just before 1:30 a.m.
U.S. Marshals say Fitzgerald was pronounced dead on the scene. Harper was reportedly wounded in her legs and was taken to a local hospital.
Vestavia Hills police Lt. Kevin York said he received the information from the USMS, and is still waiting to get more details. "It's unfortunate it ended this way, but that was their decision instead of surrendering," York said.
The Vestavia Hills wife and mother abducted by the pair from her home Sunday morning, who wants to remain unnamed, released this statement to AL.com: "Now that this nightmare is over, we start the healing process. We continue to pray for all the families affected by this crime spree, but also pray for the suspects and their families as they have now lost a father and son, and also for the heart of the injured suspect that she may find peace. Thank you for the ongoing support and protection provided by the Vestavia Hills Police Department, family, friends, and our community. We will continue to give God the glory for his protection and care over all of us during this week. We ask now for privacy as we begin to move forward and proceed with our daily lives."
Kyle Dease, the 26-year-old Tuscaloosa hotel clerk also kidnapped Sunday, agreed. "Although I am sad that the outcome was exactly as I predicted I am glad that they didn't take anyone down with them,'' Dease said. "I'm just glad this is all over, and now the healing process can begin for all the victims, and also for Blake and Brittany's families. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved."
[SEE WEAR'S COVERAGE]
Start of Brightcove Player End of Brightcove Player Hear gunshots ring out as police engage 'Bonnie and Clyde' couple in FloridaThis video courtesy of WEAR in Pensacola is near the scene of a shoot out between law enforcement and the 'Bonnie and Clyde' couple Brittany Harper and Blake Fitzgerald in Santa Rosa county , Florida.
The police chief in Perry, Ga. where a 19-year-old store clerk was abducted by Fitzgerald and Harper on Monday, said the outcome isn't surprising.
"It's one of those things you think is headed in the direction it did,'' Perry police Chief Steve Lynn said. "I'm just thankful that nobody else got hurt, no law enforcement and no innocent third party. It's probably the best outcome we could have hoped for. You have to think he was bent on pushing this until something happened."
The initial chase began several hours ago near the Pensacola International Airport. Authorities say there was first a car chase, and then a foot chase in the area between the East Pensacola Heights community and the Pensacola International Airport.
Shortly before 1 a.m., the foot chase turned back into a car chase, according to USMS. They then crossed Pensacola Bay on I-10 into Santa Rosa County. Florida television reporter David Gonzalez reported just before 1:30 a.m. that multiple shots had been fired.
Blake Fitzgerald and Brittany Harper, both 30, had been on the run since Sunday. This chase possibly followed the robbery of a Famous Footwear shoe store on Davis Highway just south of I-10. Those reports are unconfirmed.
The manhunt was the latest twist in a string of events that started in Missouri Jan. 22 with several home break-ins and at least two cars stolen. The couple then ended up in Alabama on Sunday morning where police say they kidnapped a Tuscaloosa motel clerk, tried to carjack a Hoover McDonald's employee with the Tuscaloosa victim still in the car, and then abducted a Vestavia Hills woman before setting her free a short time later.
The couple told Tuscaloosa hotel clerk Dease they were trying to get to Panama City where they planned to get married and start a new life. Fitzgerald is the father of three, including an infant.
Start of Brightcove Player End of Brightcove Player
/BCLvideoWrapper / BCLcontainingBlock Watch scary footage of 'Bonnie & Clyde' couple abducting Tuscaloosa Microtel employee at gunpointThe Missouri couple on a crime spree across the Southeast stopped in Tuscaloosa and abducted a 26 year old Microtell employee at gunpoint. The above CCTV footage shows that exchange.
Fitzgerald and Harper surfaced again in Perry, Ga., on Monday night when they robbed a Murphy Express service station, and kidnapped a 19-year-old clerk. She, too, was released unharmed about 15 miles down the interstate.
The next sighting happened midday Wednesday when Fitzgerald and Brittany Harper entered Alvin's Island in Destin about noon, and walked around the store looking at items, according to Okaloosa County sheriff's spokeswoman Michele Nicholson. They met again at the back of the store and then Harper left as Fitzgerald put items in a basket for the cashier.
As the cashier began to remove the items from the basket, Nicholson said Fitzgerald pulled out a handgun, took a cordless phone from near the register and walked behind the register. After taking an undisclosed amount of cash, he left the store heading east. No one was injured.
Just hours later, authorities believe the couple robbed a Piggly Wiggly in Davisville. Escambia County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Amber Southard said the robbery happened about 4:40 p.m. A white, bald male with a thin build entered the store, showed a gun to the clerk and escaped with an undisclosed amount of cash.
Missouri couple: A timeline
Blake Fitzgerald and Brittany Harper's flight from law enforcement spanned 4 states lasted more than a week.
He was wearing blue jeans and an American Eagle sweatshirt. After leaving the store, he got into a pickup truck driven by a white female wearing a hoodie, Southard said.
Both Fitzgerald and Harper are from Joplin, Missouri, where Fitzgerald was no stranger to lawmen. He was arrested in Missouri in 2013 after police say he and another man robbed a 63-year-old woman at knifepoint. He is currently on probation in Missouri, court records show.
Fitzgerald was charged in Jasper County, Missouri in 2013 with felony first-degree burglary, vehicle tampering and theft. Police responded to the reported burglary at 2:21 a.m., according to The Joplin Globe. The 63-year-old female victim said the intruders were wearing cloth masks, broke into the house and robbed her at knife point, taking prescription medicine, cash and electronic equipment. They left in the victim's vehicle.
According to the Missouri publication, Fitzgerald was also arrested on a drunken-driving accident that injured two people and destroyed a fence. The Globe said he received "shock prison time" in those cases. Shock imprisonment is a boot-camp type of program as an alternative to prison geared toward rehabilitation. Missouri police told AL.com Fitzgerald only spent 120 days in prison on a seven-year sentence.
Last year, he received a suspended imposition of sentence for felony assault of another man at a nightclub. In that case, he pleaded guilty to second-degree assault in a plea agreement allowing probation but requiring the defendant to pay the victim's $17,596 in restitution.
Joplin police Cpl. Chuck Niess said Fitzgerald was a suspect in a Jan. 22 break-in at the home of a doctor. At least two guns were taken in the break-in, and police believe those are the guns Fitzgerald has used in the Alabama and Georgia crimes. There is also a burglary investigation underway from a break-in at Fitzgerald's grandmother's home in which he was also a suspect.
Cape Girardeau County's James said Fitzgerald and Harper are suspects in two stolen car cases there. On Jan. 26, a black Cadillac was stolen from X-treme Powersports, a used car lot in Webb City. Two days later, lawmen spotted the stolen Cadillac and tried to pull them over. They refused and the chase was on, James said. Ultimately, deputies lost sight of them.
Later that day, James said, the couple is believed to have broken into a Cape Girardeau home. The suspects gained entry to the home by smashing through a glass window. There was no one home at the time. They left the stolen Cadillac in the garage of that home, and stole the red Chevrolet Trailblazer that they would then drive to Alabama.