Leon Davis was sentenced to death by the State of Florida for four murders committed in seven days
According to court documents Leon Davis would go into a store and murder Yvonne Bustamante and her pregnant sister-in-law, Juanita “Jane” Luciano
A few days later Leon Davis would murder Pravinkumar Patel, 33, and Dashrath Patel, 51, outside of a store
Leon Davis would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death
Leon Davis Photos
Leon Davis FAQ
Where Is Leon Davis Now
Leon Davis is incarcerated at Union Correctional Institution
Leon Davis Case
On the evening of December 7, 2007, Davis drove to the vicinity of a BP gas station and convenience store (BP) with the intent to commit robbery. The BP was located near the intersection of Highway 557 and Interstate 4 in Polk County. Around 8:51 p.m. that evening, BP employee Dashrath Patel (Dashrath) and his friend Pravinkumar Patel (Pravinkumar) walked out of the convenience store’s front door and across the parking lot to change the gas price sign.
The BP had closed for the evening, and the convenience store lights were turned off. While talking on the telephone, another BP employee, Prakashkumar Patel (Prakashkumar), remotely locked the store’s front door and began to change the gas prices on the cash register. Seconds later, the surveillance camera captured a person who appeared to be a black man, about six feet tall, who approached the front door of the store and pulled on the door. The man, who had a large build, was dressed in dark clothing and wore a hood and a face mask.
Prakashkumar indicated to the man that the store was closed. The man then raised a gun to the window and fired one shot into the store towards Prakashkumar. Suddenly, the shooter’s attention was drawn to Dashrath and Pravinkumar, and he ran across the parking lot toward them. Surveillance footage showed both men with their hands in the air, and Prakashkumar reported hearing two gunshots that occurred about five to ten seconds apart. According to the surveillance footage, the gunshots were fired at approximately 8:53 p.m. After firing the gunshots, the shooter ran back to the store’s locked front door and tried in vain to open it. He raised his gun again, but he then turned and ran away from the scene.
In the meantime, Prakashkumar had activated the silent alarm, called 9–1–1, and sheltered in the storeroom. Upon arrival at the scene, the responding deputies learned that there were two missing people. Following a brief search, the bodies of Dashrath and Pravinkumar were located. Both victims were shot in the head execution-style with .38 caliber bullets.
With the assistance of a trained K–9 search dog, law enforcement searched the immediate area for the scent of a person who may have recently left the scene. The K–9 detected a scent that tracked about one quarter of a mile to the north of the gas station. Footprints led in the same direction that the K–9 tracked, up to the point where a set of tire tracks began. A crime scene technician photographed and made casts of the tire tracks.
In the days following the murders, law enforcement conducted traffic stops in the area of the BP to question drivers who may have seen something pertinent on the evening of the murders. During the course of these stops, four people provided information regarding a car that was parked that evening in an isolated area near the gas station. The witnesses described a dark-colored car, possibly a black Nissan, backed up against a gate. One of the witnesses described the car as having a distinctive grille on the front end.
Davis was not identified as a suspect in the December 7 BP murders until after the December 13 robbery, arson, and shootings at the Headley Insurance Agency in Lake Wales (Headley). Davis was positively identified as the perpetrator of those crimes. The lead detective in both the BP and the Headley investigations was Detective Ivan Navarro. Detective Navarro requested an analysis of the ballistics evidence obtained during the course of the BP and Headley investigations. The results of the analysis demonstrated that the same gun was used in the crimes at the BP and at Headley.
During the Headley investigation, a black Nissan Altima with a distinctive grille was seized from the parking lot of a local nightclub, and during a search of the car, Davis’s driver license was found inside. Additionally, two dark-colored jackets were found in the car’s trunk, and a pair of black gloves was found in the glove compartment. In light of the witness reports that a possibly black Nissan was parked near the BP on the evening of December 7, Detective Navarro requested an analysis of the BP tire casts and the tires from the Nissan Altima linked to Davis to look for similarities. The tires from Davis’s Nissan Altima were consistent with the BP tire casts.
A grand jury later indicted Davis for multiple counts stemming from the BP events: two counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted first-degree murder, one count of attempted armed robbery, and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/fl-supreme-court/1754072.html
