A Florida sheriff’s deputy is dead and another two were left wounded after they were ambushed while responding to reports of an altercation at a home in a suburb north of Orlando.
The violence began on Friday just before 8 p.m. in Eustis, Lake County Sheriff Peyton Grinnell told reporters during a late-night news conference.
When the first two deputies arrived on the scene, they were directed to a residence where they found the back door kicked in and could hear a disturbance coming from within.
“When the deputies entered the home, there was a lot of gunfire where one of the deputies was struck,” the sheriff said. “The backup deputy that was there with him was able to retreat out of the home.”
Grinnell added that the first deputy was left trapped inside, prompting additional officers to respond in a bid to rescue him.
“They were just met with a hail of gunfire, a lot of gunfire,” he said, noting that the first deputy died from his wounds.
A second deputy was shot in the armpit and stomach and is in critical condition, while a third deputy was hit in the shoulder and is currently listed in stable condition.
Grinnell said two suspects inside the home were later found dead by a SWAT team and a third person was rushed to the hospital. He did not specify how the pair died, nor how the other person was wounded.
Neither the deputies involved nor the suspects have been identified.
Grinnell said there was no history of violent crime at the home and nothing to indicate deputies would be in serious danger.
“They were ambushed,” he said.
