Fmr. Miami-Dade Cop Surrenders To St. Lucie County Deputies After Standoff
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ST LUCIE COUNTY (CBSMiami) – A former Miami-Dade police officer has surrendered to St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office deputies following a standoff, CBS12 reports.
The standoff happened at the Flying J truck stop in Fort Pierce.
Sheriff Ken Mascara said they were first alerted to the incident when dispatchers took calls from the Miami-Dade Police Department and the man's girlfriend.
Apparently, the former Miami-Dade officer, who has not been identified, was suicidal.
"We, as an agency, felt that he wanted to commit suicide by cop, that was our biggest fear," Mascara said.
Deputies said the former officer barricaded himself in a pickup truck with some sort of weapon.
CBS12 reported the man put blankets over the windows of his pickup trucks so deputies could not see inside.
"He said he never wanted to hurt anybody, he was going through a lot of personal things in his life," Mascara said the man told them after surrendering. "I told him I know what that feels like. We all know the pain that can affect these law enforcement officers. I said we are all one big family here to take care of you. He just felt relief it was all over."
Sheriff Mascara said they are going to take the man to a mental health facility to get the help he needs.
Stay with CBSMiami.com for updates on this developing story.
