GIFFORD — An attempt by an unknown shooter to fire at deputies during a traffic stop was caught on video, according to an Indian River County Sheriff’s Office news release.
The deputies stopped the vehicle about 11:30 p.m. July 28 on 32nd Avenue near the 45th Street intersection in Gifford. Two deputies that were backup spoke to the passengers of the vehicle while a third deputy conducted his investigation on the driver’s license and vehicle registration, the release states.
In the dashboard camera footage, two shots that sound like loud “pops” were fired at the deputies at the stop.
Deputies under fire during traffic stopMedia release: July 31, 2017On Friday, July 28, 2017, at approximately 11:30 PM, Deputy Chad Sharpeta conducted a traffic stop on 32nd Avenue near the intersection of 45th Street in Gifford. Two other deputies were on scene as backup speaking to the passengers of the vehicle while Deputy Sharpeta conducted his investigation on the license and registration information. During this time, two shots rang out which are believe to have been aimed at deputies on the stop. The deputies established a perimeter but were unable to locate the shooter. Two shell casings were found along with abandoned cellular telephones. The shooter is believed to have been standing behind a nearby grocery store, firing on deputies. No one was injured and no bullet holes were found in any agency vehicles. The incident was captured on video and posted to our agency Facebook page.Indian River County Sheriff Deryl Loar stated, "As you can hear in the video, two shots were fired in very close proximity to our deputies as they were conducting a routine traffic stop. This year has been exceedingly dangerous for our local law enforcement. This is an ambush style shooting as our deputies were focused on their tasks during this stop. We will not tolerate this conduct and we will investigate every lead trying to identify the person who fired on our deputies Friday night." Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at 1-800-273-TIPS (8477) or www.tcwatch.org. You can remain anonymous and possibly be eligible for a reward of up to $3,000.00.
Posted by Indian River County Sheriff's Office on Monday, July 31, 2017
The law enforcement officers established a perimeter, but did not find the shooter. They found two shell casings and abandoned cell phones, the release states.
The shooter is believed to have been standing behind a nearby grocery store, firing on deputies.
“This is an ambush style shooting as our deputies were focused on their tasks during this stop,” Sheriff Deryl Loar said in the release. “We will not tolerate this conduct and will investigate every lead trying to identify the person who fired on our deputies Friday night.”
No injuries were reported and no bullet holes were found in any agency vehicles.
Anyone with information on the incident or the shooter should contact Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at 1-800-273-TIPS or tcwatch.org. Callers can remain anonymous and possibly be eligible for a reward of up to $3,000.
