Suspect who Killed 2, Wounded Fla. Deputy, 2 Others Dies in SWAT Shootout

A man accused of killing two people and wounding three others in the Florida Panhandle — including a deputy — has been killed in a SWAT team shootout, law enforcement officials say.

The “exchange of gunfire” happened early Friday, Feb. 7, and details of the confrontation have not been released.

Investigators say the suspect’s crime spree included a deadly gas station robbery Feb. 6 in Gadsen County, a police chase in Columbia County, and a shootout with deputies in Suwannee County.

Gadsen and Suwannee counties are about 110 miles apart.

Residents in the Live Oak area of Suwannee County were urged to “shelter in place” during a manhunt for the suspect, the Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post. Live Oak is about an 80-mile drive southeast from Tallahassee.

“We’ve had a deputy involved shooting in the area. ... Our deputy was shot, but is OK,” the Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office said.

Gadsen County Sheriff Morris A. Young said the man shot four people while robbing a Mobile gas station in Quincy, and two died, according to a news release posted at 12:31 a.m. on Feb. 7.

The suspect’s vehicle was then spotted by law enforcement in Columbia County, which prompted the gunfight with deputies, Young said.

“A pursuit by FHP, Columbia and Suwannee sheriff’s offices led to the driver crashing,” he said.

“The driver then fired on the officers, striking a Suwannee County deputy. The deputy’s body armor minimized the impact of the shot, which resulted in non-life threatening injuries to the deputy.”

The man escaped the crash scene on foot, Young said, before being shot and killed by the SWAT team.

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