Source The Charlotte Observer
A sheriff’s deputy was left fighting for his life outside a Florida gas station when a man with a knife began chasing him through the parking lot, investigators say.
The attack happened around 10 p.m. Sunday, July 28, at a RaceTrac in Vero Beach, and ended with the deputy killing Jeffrey Lee Miller, the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. Vero Beach is about a 140-mile drive north from Miami.
A motive has yet to be revealed, but 42-year-old Miller told his wife earlier in the evening that “he wanted to take out” a cop, officials said.
“This guy ... is carrying a knife and a vape pen in his hand. As he approaches the deputy, he goes to attacking him with the knife. The deputy takes off (and) begins firing shots as the guy is giving chase,” Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers said at a news conference posted on YouTube.
“(The deputy) has no clue what’s going on here and all of a sudden this guy is attacking him with a knife.”
Miller was described as “still conscious and breathing” after being shot “multiple times,” but later died at the scene, officials said.
Investigators say the deputy was across the street when he heard a disturbance at the gas station. That proved to be two people running from Miller through the parking lot, officials said.
Warning: The video linked below may be disturbing to some viewers.
Video shows the deputy and suspect were passing each other in the lot when the deputy exited his car, and was immediately attacked.
“The guy did make contact with him when he swung at (the deputy) at the car. No blood drawn,” Flowers said.
“His intent was to take him out. We believe this guy thought our deputy was there for him.”
The identity of the deputy was not released. He is 44 and began working for the department in January after six years with other law enforcement agencies in the state, officials said.
“From the time that our deputy is approached at the car until the shots are fired and he’s down on the ground is 3.5 seconds,” Flowers said.
“Our deputy is a hero today because he did the right thing. ... He protected himself and he potentially protected the lives of others.”
The suspect served time in prison and has “an extensive criminal history,” including an “active warrant out of Pennsylvania for a parole violation,” the sheriff’s office said.
Miller was living with his wife in Palm Bay, Florida, and she was also at the gas station. The couple have children, and they were not at the scene, officials said.
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