Fourth man arrested after Midtown shooting

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Keithen Lamar Cobb, 33, of Micanopy, was arrested early Saturday morning during an investigation of a shooting in Midtown; however, he was transported to a hospital after fainting in a police car and was booked after the other defendants in the case.

As Alachua Chronicle reported yesterday, Gregory Frazier, 31, of Ocala; Bruce Wynne Garniss, 20; and Gene Rubin Rowe, Jr., 26, were arrested after allegedly running from officers who were investigating a shooting near the 1000 block of W. University Avenue. Garniss was reportedly found with a gunshot in the leg and transported to the hospital.

Several Gainesville Police Department Officers heard gunshots around 2:30 a.m. Saturday morning, and multiple calls were received about the gunshots.

A responding officer reportedly saw Frazier and Rowe walking south through the parking lot in the 1100 block of Alligator Alley. They were reportedly in a “heightened state of emotion” and met up with two other men before walking toward the west; one could be heard saying, “And you’re to going to run?”

Occupants of a vehicle leaving the parking lot reportedly flagged down the officer and told him that the four men were involved in the shooting.

An officer drove toward the group, made contact with them in the 1100 block of SW 1st Avenue, and ordered them to stop. One man walked north on SW 12th Street, and the other three, later identified as Frazier, Garniss, and Rowe, fled toward the east, back toward the parking lot. Officers in the area of the parking lot apprehended the three men; Garniss was reportedly found hiding in a vehicle with a gunshot wound to the leg.

Frazier and Rowe were transported to GPD Headquarters for questioning, and Garniss was transported to an emergency room to be treated for the gunshot wound.

The officer who originally made contact with the four men reported that after the other three ran back toward the parking lot, Cobb took a defensive posture and kept his right hand in his pocket; the officer reported that after moving to the side, he could see the grip of a pistol in Cobb’s hand. The officer detained Cobb and reportedly recovered a Taurus .40 caliber pistol with the slide locked back, indicating that it had been fired until empty. The gun had been reported stolen out of Orange County.

Cobb was reportedly arrested and then transported to a hospital after fainting in a patrol vehicle.

Cobb has been charged with grand theft of a firearm and two counts of possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon. Cobb has three felony convictions (two violent) out of Marion and Baker counties (the Baker County conviction was for an offense while incarcerated in prison there). He has served four prison sentences, with his most recent release in 2022. Judge Craig DeThomasis set bail at $15,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.