One dead, another injured in beachside shootout with Brevard SWAT team
One man was killed and a woman seriously injured in a shootout Wednesday after Brevard County sheriff’s agents attempted to carry out a drug warrant at a residence near the Sebastian Inlet, the sheriff's office reported.
The shooting took place about 12:45 p.m. as SWAT team members surrounded a home on Beverly Court south of Melbourne Beach. Three people – including the mother of one of those shot - were in the home. Sheriff Wayne Ivey was also at the site as agents arrived at the home to execute the drug warrant after complaints about heavy traffic at the residence.
“You point a gun at one of our team, you will pay the ultimate price,” Ivey said during a press conference.
Deputies roped off the neighborhood as crime scene agents arrived. A second search warrant to go through the house was expected to be executed later, Ivey said.
Sheriff’s agents shouted for the residences to come out of the home. The first person stepped outside of the home.
“We tried to get the other two individuals who were in the house, a male and a female, to come out. We addressed them several times, ‘Please come out, please come out,' ” Ivey said.
SWAT team members spotted the man in a hallway with a shotgun. The unidentified man, believed to be in his 50s, then pointed the shotgun at the deputies and fired the shotgun.
The SWAT team returned fire at the home, striking the man and the woman. The woman was recovered from the house and taken by Brevard County Fire Rescue to a nearby hospital for treatment of her injuries. The woman was talking with deputies, Ivey said.
An investigation is underway.
Check back for updates.
J.D. Gallop is a criminal justice/breaking news reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Gallop at 321-917-4641 or jgallop@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @JDGallop.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Brevard SWAT team returns fire, killing shotgun-wielding man
