HCSO deputies intentionally hit by car face long roads to recovery
TAMPA, Fla. - Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said both deputies injured in a targeted attack face long roads to recovery but are both optimistic and simply grateful that they're alive.
Deputy Manuel Santos was sent home from Tampa General over the weekend but will return this week for surgery. Corporal Carlos Brito is still being treated as doctors continue to do "whatever they can" to save part of his leg from being amputated.
The sheriff's office shared an update on Brito to social media Sunday morning, posting photos of the corporal surrounded by family and friends, along with Sheriff Chronister, in the hospital.
Santos was released from the hospital over the weekend.
Sheriff Chronister said he’ll have a difficult road ahead due to his severe injuries, and surgeons are "cautiously optimistic" about being able to save the corporal's left leg.
Meanwhile, deputy Santos was wheeled out Saturday as he was cheered on by his team.
He held back tears as he recalled nearly being crushed by a car last Thursday morning – while responding to a mental health call in Brandon. He called it "the scariest moment of his life."
"I'm happy to be here. The chances of me being here obviously were pretty slim to none for a second. But I made it," Santos said. "I’ve got some ligament damage, tendon damage, I’m going to have to go through reconstructive surgery for my knee, my tibia, that’s all destroyed."
Corporal Brito is still in the hospital. Courtesy: Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office
Last Thursday morning, Brito and Santos were two of several deputies who responded to the call in Brandon, from a woman who said her son was acting "irrational and violent."
They arrived to find 28-year-old Ralph Bouzy sitting in the driver's seat of his car. They said Bouzy ignored deputies' commands and drove away.
But - as seen in disturbing surveillance video - he returned to the scene and intentionally rammed his car into Brito and Santos, pinning them between his car and one of the deputies' SUVs.
Body camera footage from other deputies showed the man stepping out of the car and walking toward the other deputies before being subdued with stun guns.
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They were at the hospital to support deputy Santos as he was released Saturday, and described those terrifying moments from their perspective.
"There was no time to think," said Deputy Vincent Valentine. "It was one of those split second decisions where seconds felt like minutes. Minutes felt like hours. We received some of the highest standard of training in the country, and it kicked in second nature, and there was no time for emotion. So we also had to put that to the side and offer that level of professionalism to the bad guy who was no longer armed."
Chronister said the attack was targeted. He also mentioned that Brito thought he was going to die and left what he thought would be a last message to his wife over his radio in the moments after he was struck.
Bouzy is being held without bond.
He's charged with three counts of attempted murder on a law enforcement officer, and has a criminal history of trying to attack officers in several different incidents.
He is reportedly still "very violent" and has hit at least two deputies in the face since being in custody.
Meanwhile, the two deputies remain optimistic and in good spirits. Santos and his wife celebrated their 17th anniversary over the weekend, and joked that him being in the hospital was a way to have a night alone without their kids.
Corporal Brito has a wife and three young daughters.
The HCSO has shared a donation page set up to support Brito and Santos through the Lynn Sowers Memorial Foundation. The sheriff's office said all money raised will "go towards covering medical expenses, rehabilitation, and any additional support needed for them and their families."