Pasco deputy shoots, injures suspect in New Port Richey
A Pasco sheriff’s deputy shot and wounded a suspect who opened fire on deputies in New Port Richey early Wednesday, according to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office.
Joseph Nathaniel Midkiff, 34, was hit in the elbow and taken to HCA Florida Bayonet Point Hospital to be treated for injuries that deputies said were not life threatening. Midkiff was arrested on multiple charges, including attempted murder of a law enforcement officer.
The shooting happened after deputies responded at about 2:20 a.m. to a call regarding a suspected stolen Honda motorcycle near the intersection of Rowan Road and Kauai Loop, according to arrest affidavits. Deputies saw the Honda about 10 feet away from a moving van in a parking lot. Midkiff was standing on the back bumper of the van, the affidavits state.
When a deputy ordered Midkiff to show his hands, Midkiff took off running along a sidewalk toward Rowan Road. During the foot chase, the affidavits state, Midkiff fired one round from a semi-automatic handgun. One of the pursuing deputies returned fire, shooting five rounds from his agency handgun and striking Midkiff in the left elbow.
Midkiff continued to run and was later found hiding in the woods near the intersection of Rowan Road and Sharpsburg Boulevard and taken into custody. Deputies found a 9mm handgun in the woods where he was hiding, according to the affidavits.
During an interview with investigators, Midkiff said he agreed to be the lookout for another man while he stole the motorcycle but deputies found no evidence of a second suspect, the affidavits state.
In addition to the attempted murder charge, Midkiff was arrested on charges of resisting law enforcement with violence, illegally possessing a firearm as a felon and grand theft of the vehicle.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the shooting, which is standard under the sheriff’s office’s policy.
