1 deputy killed and 2 injured in ‘ambush’ shooting in Florida, sheriff says
(CNN) — A central Florida deputy was killed and two others injured when they were “ambushed” after responding to a disturbance Friday night, Lake County Sheriff Peyton Grinnell said.
The shooting happened at a home in Eustis about 40 miles north of Orlando around 8 p.m., Grinnell said.
“We went to a disturbance at one house – the initial call was for a disturbance – and then, while we were on that scene, somebody at that scene told the deputies they needed to go to the other house, that that’s where there was a problem happening,” Grinnell said at a news conference early Saturday.
Lake County deputies arrived at the other house to find the back door kicked in and “some commotion” taking place inside, the sheriff said.
“They were just met with a lot of gunfire,” Grinnell said. The first deputy who entered the house was injured and trapped inside while another deputy was able to get out.
Other law enforcement responded, and when they went to rescue the trapped deputy, they were again met with gunfire and another deputy was struck, the sheriff said.
Two of the responding deputies sustained gunshot injuries, and the deputy who was trapped inside the home later died from his gunshot injuries, according to Grinnell.
Two of the suspects were found dead as a SWAT team entered the home, and another was transported to an area hospital, he added.
The names of the deputies and those inside the home have not been released.
Grinnell said an initial sweep of the home revealed “multiple firearms” inside.
“Everything from long guns to handguns,” he said.
An animal enforcement unit had been to the home in the past, but “as of right now, we don’t show anything of any violent crime,” the sheriff said.
He noted this was the first death of a deputy in the community since February 2005 and said the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the incident.
CNN’s Lechelle Benken contributed to this report.
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