Sheriff: Brooksville man at center of Friday night shooting, fire, killed by SWAT
BROOKSVILLE, Fla. - A Brooksville man who was suspected of shooting two people Friday evening was killed when he engaged with SWAT officers, according to the Hernando County Sheriff's Office.
The confusing incident unfolded off Erma Road Friday just before 5 p.m. Deputies were called when neighbors saw a building on fire. Others called to report hearing gunshots in the area, and then someone called 911 to say there were people suffering from gunshot wounds.
When deputies and emergency crews got there, they found a building engulfed in flames and two people needing to be rescued.
A woman who was shot ran to an ambulance on the scene. She was taken to the hospital. Crews realized there was a man who had been shot, but the sheriff's office said deputies and firefighters were "unable to access him due to the active shooter."
Deputies looking for Steve Roosa after shooting and fire in Brooksville
The active shooting suspect was 64-year-old Steve John Roosa. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office sent SWAT and crisis response officers to assist.
They tried to talk to Roosa, but the suspect refused communication.
Once SWAT was able to rescue the male victim and take him to the hospital, they broke their way into the building where Roosa was barricaded. Roosa, still armed, ran out the front door and confronted SWAT. The Hernando County Sheriff's Office said they were forced to open fire. Roosa was pronounced dead on the scene.
Agencies including the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, ATF and the State Fire Marshall are helping investigate the incidents.
The woman who was shot was released from the hospital Friday night. The man was still in the hospital Saturday, in critical condition.
No deputies were injured during this incident.