Off-duty deputy wounded in shootout with police, New York officials say
Police in New York shot and wounded an off-duty Vermont sheriff’s deputy during the early morning hours of Sunday, Nov. 20, according to officials and local media reports. Two other people were injured as well.
The incident began around 3 am when the off-duty deputy, identified as Vito E. Caselnova IV, got into a verbal altercation with a group of people in Saratoga Springs, about 35 miles north of Albany, according to WNYT.
The incident became physical when Caselnova was slammed into the hood of a car and thrown to the ground, the outlet reported.
Caselnova then revealed he had a gun, and a member of the group fired at him, according to WRGB. A brief shootout ensued.
Nearby Saratoga Springs police officers heard the gunshots and rushed to the scene, where officers repeatedly told him to drop his weapon, according to the outlet.
“By my count there are at least eight separate, clear, unequivocal commands to put the gun down and get on the ground,” a city official said at a news conference recorded by WNYT. “They are all ignored.”
Officers then fired upon Caselnova, who sustained 10 gunshot wounds, which could include both exit and entry wounds, according to the Daily Gazette.
Two others were injured in the shootout, which transpired in a matter of minutes, according to the outlet.
A spokesperson for the Saratoga Springs Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News.
Caselnova, a person grazed by a bullet, believed to be his girlfriend, and one other individual were taken to a hospital, according to WCAX.
“My mother always told us… Nothing ever good happens after 2 a.m.,” Lisa Bekesy, a nearby resident, told News10. “Because after 2 a.m.…there’s a reason… Because it’s usually people in bars drinking too much, it gets out of hand.”
The investigation remains ongoing, according to a Nov. 20 press release from the Saratoga Springs Police Department.
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