Three bail bondsmen encountered a wanted man at an apartment before gunfire led to a police response and prolonged standoff.
WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. — A bail bondsman was critically injured early Thursday when a man wanted on felony charges opened fire as three bondsmen tried to take him into custody at a Wesley Chapel apartment complex, the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office said.
Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco identified the wanted man as Henry Josena. The sheriff said Josena had failed to appear in court on lewd and lascivious charges from Hillsborough County. The three bondsmen arrived at the Enclave apartments around 12:58 a.m., beginning a sequence that brought deputies to the complex and ended with Josena dead inside the apartment.
Nocco said one of the bondsmen went toward the back of the apartment, where Josena opened fire and severely injured him. A second bondsman helped the wounded man escape from the apartment while calling 911 for help. A third bondsman remained inside as the situation developed.
Deputies responding to the emergency entered the apartment equipped with ballistic shields. They began calling for Josena to come outside, but another man emerged instead. Deputies detained him before quickly determining he was Josena’s brother and was not the person they were seeking, according to the sheriff.
As deputies moved farther into the apartment, Nocco said they came under fire. Several rounds struck the ballistic shield being used by the responding team. Two deputies suffered minor injuries during the encounter, but the sheriff said the shield prevented a potentially more serious outcome.
The third bondsman was still inside during the law enforcement response. Deputies were able to communicate with him and confirm that he had not been injured. Officers then maintained their positions as they continued efforts to locate Josena and bring the standoff to an end.
Authorities deployed pepperball gas and used a drone to look inside the apartment, Nocco said. Deputies eventually found Josena dead. The sheriff said Josena died by suicide. No Pasco County deputies fired their weapons during the response.
Investigators found multiple firearms inside the apartment, including shotguns, rifles and handguns, according to the sheriff. Authorities had not said Thursday morning exactly how many shots were fired. Body-worn camera footage from the incident also had not been publicly released.
The wounded bondsman was taken to a hospital and remained in critical condition in the initial account released by authorities. The two other bondsmen were not reported injured, while the two deputies hurt during the response suffered minor injuries.
The incident remained under investigation Thursday. Authorities had not released additional information about the critically injured bondsman or provided a more detailed account of the evidence recovered from the apartment.
Author note: Last updated September 10, 2026.