GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The victim and suspect involved in the deadly shootout with Gainesville police on Wednesday were identified by the Gainesville Police Department.
Detectives identified the victim found inside the Imeca Lumber business as Eduardo P. Rodriguez, 23.
The man who police said shot him and also engaged in a deadly shootout with Gainesville officers was identified as Justin D. Long, 31.
Police Chief Nelson Moya said at 7:56 a.m., officers responded to reports of shots fired on E. University Avenue, near Waldo Road.
Nearby officers went to the scene and spotted the identified Long in a red car and tried to stop him, who then got out of the car and started firing on the officers. Additional officers responded and shot the Long, killing him.
“...absolutely assaulted our officers and met them with gunfire in an ambush-style attack,” Moya said. “Our officers, by the grace of God, were able to engage the suspect in a violent exchange of gunfire, resulting in the death of the assailant who passed on scene.”
While conducting their investigation, officers found the body of Rodriguez with gunshot wounds in the Imeca Lumber & Hardware store.
Moya said the Long entered the store after parking behind a nearby KFC, walked over to the lumber yard, shot the victim, and went back to his car in an attempt to flee.
The police chief said they currently don’t know the relationship between Long and Rodriguez, but they do know that he acted with “clear intent.”
The two officers who were shot were transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Moya said. They have since been released.
“I’ve since met with them and their families to express my gratitude for their heroism and their actions today, which resulted, not only in them, in essence, neutralizing somebody who was out to commit murder, but also ensuring that the rest of our public was safe.”
City leaders later addressed the community, emphasizing that it was an isolated incident and that overall crime in Gainesville has been trending down.
“In 2023, or 16 people murdered in Gainesville last year, 24, there were eight, 25, there were three, in the city of 150,000,” Harvey Ward, the mayor of Gainsville said. “This is certainly nothing where we’re gonna start the year off, but as the chief mentioned, this isn’t an anomaly, and the most important thing I can tell you to folks who are in the surrounding neighborhoods, you are safe.”
Art Forgey, the public information officer of the Gainesville Police Department, spoke to News4JAX anchor Jen Waugh on her 10 a.m. streaming show on News4JAX+.
“Nobody wants to be involved in this situation and we’re just happy that our officers are okay,” Art Forgey, the public information officer of the Gainesville Police Department, said.
See the full phone interview with Forgey below.
The sheriff’s office said the investigation remains active and there is “no active threat to the public.”
A spokesperson with the University of Florida told News4JAX this incident is not affecting operations at the university, nor are any of their officers involved.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will investigate.