One robbery suspect, reportedly a 16-year-old, fatally shot by a deputy, cops say
A St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office deputy fatally shot a robbery suspect early Sunday morning after a chase that involved a car, a deputy’s foot and a suspect’s drawn firearm.
That’s according to the SLCSO, which said both deputies involved in the chase have been placed on administrative leave with pay. Neither the deputies’ nor the living suspect’s names have been released. TCPalm.com says St. Lucie Sheriff Ken Mascara identified the deceased suspect as 16-year-old Yemerson Melendez.
Around 3:35 a.m., a 911 caller from Promenade Way in Fort Pierce said, “two males in dark clothing wearing hoodies were trying to break into parked vehicles in the driveway,” Mascara said.
When the two deputies answering the call saw a car leaving the area, they tried to stop it. Instead, the driver left the area, Mascara said, and crashed at 25th Street and Edwards Road.
“When our deputies approached the vehicle, the driver fled again, running over one deputy’s foot,” he said.
The chase resumed until another crash, SLCSO said, near Eighth Street and Boston Avenue. Both suspects ran. One deputy found the driver about a block away.
Mascara said the suspect, “aggressively resisted all attempts to comply with the deputy, pulling a firearm and endangering the deputy’s life.”
The deputy shot him at around 3:52 a.m. Mascara said deputies tried to help while waiting for St. Lucie County Fire Rescue to arrive. Fire rescue pronounced the driver suspect dead at 4:05 a.m.
The second suspect hasn’t been located.
