The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 44-year-old man in connection with the shooting of his pregnant girlfriend on November 22, 2025.
At 5:17 a.m., Brandon Regional Hospital notified deputies that a woman eight months pregnant had been dropped off at the Emergency Room with a gunshot wound to the abdomen. Staff reported that the man who brought her fled immediately.
Detectives identified the man as Eric Patterson, a 15-time convicted felon. According to investigators, the victim was asleep in bed with two of her children when Patterson shot her. The round also struck her unborn baby.
The woman underwent emergency surgery. Her baby was delivered and later airlifted to Tampa General Hospital for surgery.
On November 25, 2025, detectives arrested Patterson. He faces charges of Aggravated Battery with a Deadly Weapon on a Pregnant Female, Tampering with Physical Evidence, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Shooting Within or Into a Building, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, and two counts of Child Neglect.
Sheriff Chad Chronister said both the woman and newborn survived and credited the work of detectives in locating and arresting the suspect.