Five Hollywood police officers opened fire on man waving a gun
Five police officers in Hollywood have been identified as the men who opened fire on a 41-year-old man this month after he waved a gun near a Hollywood bar.
Roman Ivnitski was shot outside Oceans 13 Sports Bar and Grill on Oct. 12. Police at the time said he was critically wounded and under guard at the hospital.
Until now, police have not said how many officers were involved. The department released the information only when pressed by a South Florida Sun Sentinel attorney.
The officers were identified as Nicholas Truntz, Ricardo Sainpaulin, Dave Rogers, Mark Robbins and John Estrada.
Weeks after the shooting, Hollywood police have said little about it, including how Ivnitski might have threatened the officers. Ivnitski’s condition is unknown, even to his family.
Police also won’t say how many times Ivnitiski was shot and whether all five officers who fired their weapons actually hit the man.
The matter is under investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. A woman who lives near Oceans 13 previously said that she heard seven or eight shots.
“Oh my gosh,” Ivnitski’s sister, Irene Ivnitski, said when told how many officers fired their weapons.
Irena Ivnitski and her father, Dmitri Ivnitski have not been allowed to see Roman Ivnitski while he is in custody.
Even if police allowed it, family still could not visit because of strict COVID-19 provisions in place at Memorial Hospitals, where Ivnitski is being treated.
Family members say they desperately want to know if Ivnitski is getting better or if his condition is still grave.
Typically, hospitals do not list shooting victims, prisoners or crime victims by their real names on hospital rosters. That is the case for Ivnitsky. He is not listed as being a patient, so his family has been told there is no one there by that name.
Ivnitsky’s family does not understand why police in Hollywood will not provide answers.
Police spokesman Christian Lata explained this way: Had this been a routine arrest for waving a gun, a DUI or any other crime, police would call the family only if the person was a minor.
The same applies if the person is injured during the arrest, regardless whether the injury is through a Taser or a gun.
Lata said police would notify family if Ivnitski dies.
Because Memorial Hospital is essentially a jail to Ivnitsky, the Broward Sheriff’s Office is standing guard over him. Lt. Don Prichard, a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office, said inmates in the hospital can have visits only from their defense attorneys due to security reasons. Prichard said the Sheriff’s Office has made exceptions if the inmate is terminally ill.
“We just want to know his condition,” said Irena Ivnitski.
The family had no idea Roman Ivnitski had even been shot until a Sun Sentinel reporter told them days after the shooting. Before then, Ivnitski’s sister and father had been combing the area looking for Ivnitski after he did not come home Oct. 12.
“We had been driving around Hollywood for hours and hours looking for him and for similar cars,” Irena Ivnitski said. “It’s like he had completely disappeared. I was going crazy. I did not think he was alive anymore.”
Dmitri Ivnitki said he has contacted police to find out what happened and to ask how his son is doing. Each time, he has been told someone would contact him.
Irena Ivnitski said an investigator from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement contacted them to investigate the shooting but could not tell them anything about Roman Ivnitski’s condition.
Roman Ivnitski developed a drinking problem years ago after his wife left him when they were living in New Mexico. He came to live with his family in South Florida three years ago.
Dmitri Ivnitski said his son tried to stop drinking but could not manage to do it. He said his son owned a fake gun.
“My son is a good person. He only has one problem: alcoholism,” Dmitri Ivnitski said.
The Ivnitskis, originally from Uzbekistan. have hired a lawyer to try to help them get answers. Even that hasn’t helped, Irena Ivnitski said.
“He did not shoot one bullet, and I cannot sleep at night. I am crying all the time,” Irena Ivnitski said. “Why can’t we at least be updated on his condition? In a free country, I expected it would be different.”
Eileen Kelley can be reached at 772-925-9193 or ekelley@sunsentinel.com. Follow on Twitter @reporterkell.
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