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Tampa man accused of killing 25-year-old for cigarette money

By Danny Valentine, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Thursday, November 17, 2011

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TAMPA — A 27-year-old Tampa man hit and killed a man Monday night while trying to steal money for a pack of cigarettes, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said.
Brandon Dewayne Jones, 13618 N 22nd St., confronted 25-year-old Huayvez Gomez-Mejia, also of Tampa, around 10:15 p.m. at a BP gas station at 2230 E Fletcher Ave., then struck him in the side of the head with his fist, deputies said.
Deputies said Jones was trying to knock Gomez-Mejia unconscious so he could steal money for cigarettes. They accused Jones of taking $8 and a cell phone after Gomez-Mejia fell.
Gomez-Mejia died of blunt force trauma to the head, according to the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner's Office.
Around 11 p.m., a store clerk at the gas station called the Sheriff's Office, telling them a man was lying on the ground behind the gas station. When deputies arrived, they found Gomez-Mejia dead.
Jones was arrested around 10:30 p.m. Tuesday at his home. He was held at the Hillsborough County Jail without bail on charges of first-degree murder and robbery. Deputies said Jones admitted to the incident.