-
Tromell Jonta Camps
A repeat offender who has served at least four years in prison was arrested Tuesday on weapons and drug trafficking charges.
Palatka resident Tromell Jonta Camps, 39, was charged with using or displaying a firearm during a felony, trafficking phenethylamines, and two counts of possession of weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon, according to a Putnam County Sheriff’s Office press release.
The phenethylamine Camps is accused of having is ecstasy, also known as molly or MDMA, which is a stimulant and hallucinogen, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
Camps is a repeat offender who was convicted of third-degree murder in 2006, according to the sheriff’s office. He served prison time from 2007 to 2009, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.
“Tromell Camps has no business being out among law-abiding residents,” Sheriff Gator DeLoach said in the press release. “He has shown time and time again he has no regard for rules or even life. He will continue to terrorize our community and he needs to permanently find a home in the Florida Department of Corrections.”
In April 2013, Camps arrived at 17-year-old Dominic Gaines’ residence with two handguns, the Palatka Daily News reported. When Gaines answered the door, Camps shot at Gaines, who retrieved a shotgun from inside his own residence and shot Camps, according to the Daily News.
Daily News records show Camps received numerous wounds from the 2013 shooting and had to be taken from Putnam County Community Medical Center to a Gainesville hospital.
He was convicted of aggravated assault with a weapon and possessing a weapon as a felon, according to the Department of Corrections.
He served prison time from 2015 until 2017, state records show.
Authorities stated that multiple agencies worked the months-long investigation into Camps’ most recent offenses.
“I want to thank our partners who helped conduct this operation and warrant,” DeLoach stated Tuesday. “This is one more step in our commitment to ensuring the safety of our residents and take another poison and firearms peddler off our streets.”