Citibank Security Guard Kills Gunman After Worker Slain Over Debt
A 35-year-old man from Orlando drove to the corporate campus, shot an HR advisor three times, and crashed through a gate before being stopped by a Marine veteran.
By Peter Graham ·
Three thousand two hundred Citibank employees were inside the corporate campus in Tampa when gunfire erupted just after noon on Wednesday. The incident left one woman dead and the gunman dead after a security guard intervened. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister detailed the events in a briefing on Wednesday.
Jacob Pearson, 35, drove from Orlando to the campus. He had phoned a law firm handling Citibank collections earlier that day. Pearson called over a $2,500 delinquent payment. He threatened the attorney with explicit language, mentioning an AR-15 and a bulletproof vest. The law firm alerted Citibank security, who are a retired Secret Service agent.
Security requested a welfare check from Orlando Police at Pearson’s home. Officers found the house empty. Pearson’s wife told them he left angry and did not say where he was going. Citibank security then notified the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies were en route when Pearson arrived.
Pearson crashed his car through a security gate in the courtyard. He immediately shot LeAnne Selman, 41, three times. Selman worked for Citi Security Investigative Services as a human resources learning advisor. She had served the company for nine years. She lived in Palm Harbor. As she tried to crawl away, Pearson’s first firearm malfunctioned. He retrieved a second handgun from his vehicle and shot her again.
Pearson moved into the cafeteria. Thousands of employees ran for exits or hid. John Fraley, a Citibank security guard and Marine Corps veteran, tracked Pearson into a men’s restroom. Fraley took a tactical position and opened fire. Pearson sustained five gunshot wounds. He was transported to Tampa General Hospital, where doctors confirmed his death.
Four other people were treated and released after the evacuation. One worker cut her lip. Another suffered cuts and bruises from a fall. A third person had chest pains. A pregnant worker went to the hospital as a precaution. Pearson lived in Orlando with his wife and their seven-year-old child. He had no prior criminal record.
Chronister said Pearson was intent on hunting people. “He was there intent on one purpose and that purpose was to hunt any human being he could find and kill,” Chronister said. “Because of the heroic actions of this Citibank security officer, vice president of operations, his reign of terror ended before it even began.”
Detectives have not determined why Pearson singled out Selman. They have not revealed how he obtained the firearms. Citibank security initiated emergency measures after the phone call. The campus remained secure after the exchange of gunfire ended.
