Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood said the suspect, Joseph DiFusco, was “armed for Armageddon.”
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Chitwood said Difusco fired hundreds of rounds into people’s apartments and at officers and their vehicles.
It happened at the Kingston Condos, just off State Road A1A.
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Officers were first called there around 4:30 a.m. for a suicidal person they later identified as DiFusco.
Officers said when they tried to get him to the hospital, he refused. Hours later, they received calls reporting that a person (DiFusco) was shooting at residents and their apartments.
Chitwood said DiFusco was a Connecticut veteran with a long history of mental health issues.
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After officers secured the scene and evacuated residents, Chitwood said the SWAT team worked for hours to get DiFusco out of the apartment, but he kept shooting.
“He shot at our negotiators, he shot at the speaker of the truck, he shot at the SWAT truck. He retreated to a bedroom in the back, and we were able to send tear gas and corner him. But it was clear he wasn’t going to come out. He was armed with a shotgun, a pistol and a tommy gun,” Chitwood said.
Chitwood said that left the SWAT team with no choice but to shoot him.
Because police killed the suspect, FDLE will now take over the investigation, which is standard procedure in these cases.
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