Two Florida sheriff’s deputies were shot early Saturday after a man started blasting at his wife’s Amazon smart speaker.
Suspect Terrance Peterson began firing away at the popular Alexa speaker, claimed his daughter who called 911 to report a domestic dispute between her parents, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
Just before 2 a.m., deputies entered Peterson’s New Port Richey, Fla., residence after he refused to surrender. That’s when shots from inside the house were fired.
Peterson, 62, allegedly fired a bullet that struck one deputy in his femoral artery while a second deputy was grazed in the hand, according to Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco.
Other deputies on the scene then frantically wrapped a tourniquet around the leg of the injured officer, identified as K-9 Deputy Chris Stone.
“The suspect tried to kill everybody that was outside that house,” said Nocco. “This was a battle — an absolute gun battle.”
After a SWAT team failed to contact Peterson, officers lobbed a gas bomb inside the home and sent a robot in after it. Through its camera, Peterson was spotted lying motionless on the floor with blood trickling from his head.
“It’s a nasty crime scene,” said Nocco, who noted homes and sheriff’s vehicles were riddled with holes. “This individual had full intentions to kill deputies.”
The deputy with the injured hand has not been identified.
Peterson and his unidentified wife had been known to fight, but usually their arguments did not escalate to requiring police intervention, said Nocco.
The sheriff’s department said it expects to charge Peterson with at least five counts of attempted murder and one count of domestic violence.
