Home renovator arrested on murder charge in St. Petersburg, police say

Amy Gehrt, Tampa Bay Times
·1 min read

ST. PETERSBURG — A home renovator was arrested on a charge of first-degree murder Tuesday night after St. Petersburg police say they found a man dead in a garage earlier that day.

Jeffery Tillman, 38, of Clearwater, was arrested just after 10 p.m. Tuesday, records show. He is was being held at the Pinellas County Jail Wednesday without bail.

Police say Tillman stabbed Deno Conley, 65, who hired Tillman to conduct renovations on his home at 3410 38th St. N. The two were longtime acquaintances before the stabbing, police said.

Officers were called to the home about 1:20 p.m. Tuesday after authorities received a call about “a suspicious circumstance.” They arrived to find Conley dead in the garage with stab wounds and Tillman away from the home.

Tillman was identified as a suspect by St. Petersburg police but was believed to be out of city limits. The department contacted Clearwater police, who located and arrested Tillman at 6:41 p.m. Tuesday.