$2,500 in debt, he drove his car into a bank and killed an employee (video)

A minor financial dispute turned deadly on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, in a suburb of Tampa, Florida. Facing legal action for an unpaid credit card balance of $2,556, a man entered a Citibank administrative building in Brandon armed. He fatally wounded an employee before being shot dead by a senior Citibank executive.

The criminal chain of events began on October 23, when Citibank filed a lawsuit against Jacob Pearson, an Orlando resident, to recover a debt. Just hours before the attack on Wednesday, the suspect made a threatening phone call to one of the bank's lawyers, triggering the tragic escalation.

Around midday, Jacob Pearson drove his vehicle into the facade of one of the buildings in the Citibank complex. Once inside the administrative offices and armed with a firearm, he opened fire on Leanne Selman, a 41-year-old bank employee, fatally wounding her. The assailant then made his way to the cafeteria, where several distraught staff members had taken refuge.

The carnage was, however, interrupted by the reaction of a senior company executive, the vice president of operations and also in charge of security on site. Armed, he used his weapon to neutralize the shooter, who died instantly before the arrival of law enforcement.

Praising the decisive response of the officer, the local sheriff emphasized that his intervention most likely prevented a mass shooting among the staff. A criminal investigation has been launched to determine the exact timeline of events and to analyze the psychological profile of the perpetrator.