A 61-year-old Florida grandfather was killed Sunday, October 27, 2024, in what police describe as an “execution-style” shooting following a brief road rage encounter in Riverview, Florida.
Steven Powers was driving his work van with his adult grandson when he honked his horn at a black Mazda that cut him off on U.S. 301. According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, the Mazda’s driver, Kentavious Gholston, 26, responded by brake-checking Powers’ vehicle, forcing him to stop in the middle of the road.
When Powers exited his van to confront Gholston, a physical altercation ensued. Gholston pushed Powers to the ground and shot him twice in the back. Upon seeing that Powers was still alive, Gholston fired two more rounds, killing him. Before fleeing the scene, Gholston pointed his gun at Powers’ grandson.
The incident occurred during a routine workday for Powers, who was operating his company van. Law enforcement officials reported that Gholston’s erratic driving behavior preceded the confrontation, with multiple witnesses describing his vehicle weaving through traffic before cutting off Powers’ van.
Investigators tracked down Gholston using a debit card he dropped at the scene and video footage of the incident. Gholston turned himself in to the sheriff’s office the following day. During questioning, he confessed to the crime and revealed he had disassembled the gun and thrown it into a retention pond.
The state attorney’s office seeks to hold Gholston without bond until trial. He faces charges of second-degree murder with a firearm, aggravated assault with a firearm, and tampering with physical evidence. If convicted, Gholston could face life in prison for the second-degree murder charge alone.
Larry Davis, the victim’s nephew, said it was heartbreaking that things happened this way and felt it should never have come to this. He remembered his Uncle Steve as a hard worker and a caring person who would do anything for anyone.
Road rage incidents involving firearms have seen a significant increase in recent years, rising from 247 cases in 2014 to 620 in 2016. Statistics show that 92% of drivers witnessed an act of road rage in the past year, with approximately 30 murders annually linked to such incidents. In Florida specifically, someone is injured or killed in an act of road rage every 18 hours, making it one of the most dangerous states for such confrontations.