TAMPA, Fla. A Lakeland man who admitted to illegally possessing the firearm used in a 2020 Christmas Eve shootout that killed a 70-year-old grandmother and wounded three others has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, federal prosecutors announced.
U.S. District Judge Kathryn Mizelle sentenced 29-year-old Taqiy Lewis of Lakeland to 30 years in prison after he pleaded guilty on March 2, 2026, to possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon in connection with the shooting.
According to court documents, the shooting occurred on Dec. 24, 2020, at approximately 5:30 p.m. outside the Lakeland home of a 70-year-old woman identified as M.C. She was outside with family members, including young children, when Lewis and others engaged in a shootout in front of the residence…