State and local investigators seek motive in Melbourne deadly shootout
State and local investigators are sorting through why a 47-year-old man, who called 911, fired on Melbourne police officers in a deadly officer-involved shootout Wednesday morning.
After shooting at the officers who responded to the Pentagon Apartment Complex, the man barricaded himself inside. When he emerged hours later armed with a weapon, officers fired and he was killed.
No officers were injured.
The morning incident led police to block off the area around one of the busiest intersections in the city as officers in tactical gear set up in and around the apartment complex where the man – later identified as William J Banks Jr. – repeatedly fired at police.
“It’s still under investigation,” Sgt. Ben Slover, spokesperson for the Melbourne Police Department, said Thursday.
The deadly officer-involved shooting was the second to take place in Brevard County this year.
The incident began Wednesday morning with Banks calling 911 dispatchers about 8 a.m. to warn police about his unspecified personal situation.
Dispatchers sent officers to the Pentagon Apartment complex at 46 West New Haven Ave. to do a welfare check, police said.
Two officers arrived and knocked on the front door to the apartment. Within moments, the man inside, identified as Banks, fired several rounds through the door, causing the officers to quickly scramble for cover, police reported.
Other officers arrived a short time later with an armored vehicle, as more gunfire came from a nearby window. Residents at the complex sheltered in place as the incident unfolded.
SWAT teams and crisis negotiators attempted to contact Banks via phone when he came out of the apartment doorway about 10 a.m. clutching an unspecified firearm, the release stated. Melbourne police, joined by Brevard County Sheriff’s deputies and Palm Bay police, fired on Banks. The medic team then approached Banks and attempted to render aid after he collapsed.
Banks died of his injuries, police said.
In a Facebook post early Wednesday afternoon, Mayor Paul Alfrey said: "I want to commend our Melbourne Police and fire departments for their response and quick actions.
"A suspect who is now deceased fired upon our officers and all officers are safe."
Police released little information about Banks, who had no criminal history. State and local investigators were expected to go over the phone call Banks made while also talking to neighbors at the complex.
Agents with the Florida Department of Investigation arrived and began investigating the officer-involved shooting as is the standard practice for most police agencies across the state.
The officers involved were placed on administrative leave. An investigation into the shooting could take nearly two months with the results from FDLE's investigation being forwarded to the state attorney's office for a final determination.
J.D. Gallop is a criminal justice/breaking news reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Gallop at 321-917-4641 or jgallop@floridatoday.com. Or X, formerly known as Twitter: @JDGallop.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Melbourne shooting: Police, FDLE search for motive in deadly shootout
