Leanne Selman, a 41-year-old Palm Harbor woman, was shot and killed Wednesday, Nov. 4, at the Citibank corporate campus in Brandon.
Selman had worked in Citi's human resources division for nine years. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister identified her as the sole fatality in a lunchtime attack on a campus where roughly 3,200 employees were working.
"She wasn't able to get away quick enough, and she paid with her life," Chronister said, according to Tampa Bay 28.
The gunman was 35-year-old Jacob Pearson of Orlando. Investigators say the attack stemmed from an unpaid Best Buy credit card issued by Citibank. Court records show Pearson owed $2,556.40 and had received a court summons over the debt, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
A threat hours before
The chain of events began around 9 a.m. Nov. 4, when Pearson called an attorney's office that handles collections for Citibank, according to the sheriff. During that call, Chronister said, Pearson threatened to carry out a shooting at the bank.
The law office contacted Citi's head of security, who reached out to Orlando police, according to WTSP. Officers went to Pearson's home, but his wife said he had left and appeared angry. She did not say where he was going, according to the sheriff.
Around noon, Citibank alerted the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) to the threat. Deputies headed to the campus. Minutes later, at 12:10 p.m., Pearson drove through a security fence into an outdoor dining area where employees were eating lunch, according to Fox 13.
Leanne Selman
Attack lasted under a minute
At 12:11 p.m., Pearson stepped out carrying an AR-15-style rifle, the sheriff said. Selman was the first employee he encountered. Chronister said Pearson did not know her. She was not involved in his debt or the collection case, investigators said.
Pearson shot Selman three times with the rifle. When it malfunctioned, he returned to his car, grabbed a handgun and shot her again as she tried to crawl away, the sheriff said.
He then walked into the campus cafeteria.
That is where he encountered John Fraley, a Citi vice president of operations and member of the bank's security team. Fraley is a Marine Corps veteran authorized to carry a handgun because of his military background, the sheriff said.
Fraley heard the gunshots, moved toward the threat and positioned himself inside a men's restroom, according to Chronister. When Pearson rounded a corner, Fraley opened fire. He shot Pearson five times, ending the attack less than a minute after Pearson entered the cafeteria.
Pearson had arrived with 90 rounds of ammunition. He fired 15 rounds during the attack, the sheriff said.
Pearson was taken to Tampa General Hospital and declared dead at 1:12 p.m.
No other gunshot injuries
No other employees were shot. Two people were treated at hospitals for injuries sustained while running from the gunfire. A third person was treated for chest pains, and a pregnant employee was taken to a hospital as a precaution, the sheriff said. All four were released.
Pearson had no criminal history in Florida. He previously worked for the state Department of Juvenile Justice, which confirmed his employment ended in June 2025, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
The campus reopened Thursday, Nov. 5, though Citi told employees they could work remotely. The company said it would not require employees to return in the immediate future and that its focus is supporting Selman's family and the thousands of employees affected by the attack.
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