Recently in Clermont, Florida, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office has made public the footage of a fatal deputy-involved shooting that occurred earlier in the month. The incident took place in the early hours of April 12 on Via Roma Circle following a report of a suspicious individual.
According to investigators, the events unfolded just after midnight when deputies responded to a call regarding a person acting erratically in the neighborhood. The report indicated that the individual was standing in the street, shouting at passing cars, and later proceeded to approach a house nearby.
Subsequently, another call was made to the authorities concerning the same individual, who was now reportedly banging on a resident’s door, escalating the situation further.
Upon arrival, deputies ordered the man — later identified as Eric Escobar, 39, of Clermont — to show his hands, though he refused to do so, investigators said.
In a release, deputies said that Escobar pulled out a handgun as deputies tried to communicate with him, forcing a deputy to fire on him. Escobar was struck and died at the scene, though no one else was injured, the release shows.
On Tuesday, the sheriff’s office released body-worn camera video, providing insight into how the shooting took place.
The video kicks off with Escobar yelling at deputies that “there’s a (expletive) woman in there,” while pointing at a nearby home.
The exchange went as follows:
Escobar: “There’s a (expletive) chick that went in there, bro! She got executed…”
Deputy: “Yeah, she called me.”
Escobar: (Incoherent rambling)
Deputy: “She called me and said that you were chasing her and you were —”
Escoboar: “No! We gotta go in there! Dude, we gotta go in there, bro.”
Deputy: “I can’t go in there. She’s the one that called me and told me you were banging on her door.”
Escobar: “Dude!”
Deputy: “Are you OK?”
Escobar: “Um, well, I took a little bit, and like, I’m ready to like…” (Scoffs and turns away)
Deputy: “What are you ready to do?”
Escobar: (Turns back toward deputy) “There’s a (expletive) woman in there!”
Volusia Sheriff’s Office Bodycam Video
As the deputy continues trying to speak with Escobar, he stumbles back and forth along the street, screaming while holding an apparent phone in his hand.
The deputy orders Escobar to turn around, though Escobar fails to follow the directive, prompting the deputy to pull out a Taser.
All the while, Escobar can be heard repeatedly yelling “Please” while clutching onto the phone.
“Turn around and face away from me now!” the deputy commands. “That wasn’t a (expletive) question!”
“It was a (expletive) woman!” Escobar shouts in response. “It was a woman, dude!”
The exchange continues until Escobar appears to calm down, with the deputy introducing himself and asking for Escobar’s name.
“I’m not gonna (incoherent) with that Taser,” Escobar responds.
Eventually, Escobar admits to being armed, though he keeps insisting that the deputy go inside the house.
The deputy once again orders Escobar to put his hands up, threatening to shoot Escobar if he doesn’t follow his directions. But Escobar simply states that he won’t shoot the deputy, again insisting that “there’s a (expletive) woman in there.”
“She told me! She’s worried about you,” the deputy says. “I’m trying to help both of you. But I can’t do that while you’ve got that gun.”
However, Escobar begins stumbling away toward the house while continuing to scream, causing the deputy to follow after him.
The deputy yells at Escobar to get away from the front door of the home, telling him that he’s “gonna get shot” if he keeps it up.
Escobar just slams on the front door, continuing to grunt and scream. He can then be seen pulling out an apparent handgun from his pants, prompting the deputy to shoot him.
According to the sheriff’s office, the deputy involved in the shooting was placed on administrative leave pending a review by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
A case report shows that the victims in the home didn’t know Escobar, nor had they ever seen him before.
In addition, the report states that Escobar had committed attempted armed burglary and aggravated assault on law enforcement during this incident.
News 6 has included the body-camera video at the top of this story. Due to the nature of the shooting, the ending of the footage was omitted.
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