A Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) officer shot and killed a man Friday night after responding to reports of a violent fight involving two people lying wounded on the ground; the confrontation turned fatal when the man wielding butcher knives refused to comply with the officer's demands, according to JSO Chief Alan Parker in a statement obtained by First Coast News.
Officer Delong Zheng, who was on patrol near Jillian Drive and Ricker Road, was directed to the site of the incident after neighbors flagged him down; upon arrival at approximately 7:09 p.m., Officer Zheng discovered a middle-aged man lying on the ground and an older woman on top of him, both covered in blood, as he navigated between houses guided by the sounds of yelling and found the scene with blood "all over" a fence, First Coast News reported.
A 58-year-old suspect, who had been drinking all day, according to Chief Parker, was holding multiple kitchen butcher knives and was seen, "as he pulls them both up, he goes back and gets within just a couple feet of these two people to attack them again, and the officer engages and shoots him," in a life-threatening escalation that led to Officer Zheng discharging his firearm at the assailant, as per First Coast News.
Following the shooting, Officer Zheng provided medical assistance to the wounded man until backup officers arrived and the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department transported him to a local hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries the suspect's identity has not been released pending family notification, said JSO; the two victims found on the ground, whose relationship to the assailant remains unclear, are expected to recover, as noted by WOKV.
Officer Zheng, will administrative leave status is standard protocol in such situations, has served with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office for seven years, and this incident marked his first involvement in an officer-involved shooting, State Attorney's Office has commenced the investigation into the shooting, as reported by First Coast News.
