PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. – A 65-year-old man was treated for a self-inflicted wound after a SWAT standoff Friday afternoon, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office said.
Deputies went to Bardin Road just before 2 p.m. after receiving a report about a man who indicated he wished to harm himself.
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According to the Sheriff's Office, the man took a handgun and a shotgun, and went into a wooded area behind his home. Deputies said family members found him in a tree stand in a densely-wooded part of the property, but he refused to come down, firing a single shot into the air and demanding they leave.
Members of the SWAT team and crisis intervention negotiators responded. Deputies said a perimeter was set up to ensure the man didn't slip away into the woods.
An armored vehicle was moved into position to provide negotiators cover from which to begin a dialog with the man. Deputies said he remained uncooperative and began to periodically fire shots from both the handgun and shotgun.
A dozen shots were fired by the man over a period of several hours after deputies arrived, the Sheriff's Office said.
The negotiators were eventually able to talk the man out of the tree stand and into putting the shotgun aside, but he became uncooperative again and began moving into heavy brush while still armed with the handgun, deputies said.
The man eventually shot himself in the right shoulder before putting down the weapon and complying with commands to leave the brushy area and move toward the deputies, the Sheriff's Office said.
Deputies were then able to get the man, and he received medical attention for the self-inflicted wound.
Sheriff Gator DeLoach, who was at the scene throughout the incident, was an active participant in the command of the operation, deputies said.
"This was a very difficult operation. Approaching a heavily-armed subject in his own tree stand makes for a very dangerous situation," DeLoach said. "He had the advantage of elevation and sightlines and was in an area he obviously knows like the back of his hand. Our crisis negotiators did a fabulous job in coaxing him out of the stand and into discarding the shotgun."
Deputies said the man was taken to Orange Park Medical Center. His wound did not appear to be life-threatening.
"I am also extremely pleased and impressed with the compassion and restraint shown by all the deputies involved, especially during the periods when the subject was actively shooting," DeLoach said. "The entire operation reflects extremely well on both their training and professionalism. I could not be more proud of everyone involved. My thanks to them for a job well done."