ST. CLOUD, Fla. — A St. Cloud police officer fatally shot a “young male” suspected of stabbing a 9-year-old girl in the face and upper body during a crime spree Tuesday, St. Cloud Police Chief Pete Gauntlett said.
- Officer fired during confrontation with suspect
- Girl stable at Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children
- Two investigations are underway, chief says
Veronica Snyder told Spectrum News 13 her daughter is on the verge of losing an eye after she was stabbed in face during the violent attack.
Snyder says she was downstairs in their apartment on Georgia Avenue in St. Cloud when she heard shouting coming from an upstairs room in their apartment where her daughter was.
"That’s when I found my daughter covered in blood ... I couldn’t even recognize her," she described.
The girl, who suffered fractures to her face, was rushed to St. Cloud hospital by family members and then taken to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando in critical condition, Gauntlett said.
The girl is in stable condition and being treated at Arnold Palmer CHildren’s Hospital.
Dispatchers received two 911 calls at 12:45 p.m. about the attack on the girl. Police responded one minute later, the chief said.
A witness told responding officers about a “suspect acting very erratically” and running through several backyards.
Officers spotted a person matching the suspect’s description at 12:50 p.m. near Georgia and 3rd Street.
“Upon attempting to detain the suspect, a confrontation ensured with a St. Cloud police officer, (who) subsequently used deadly force and shot the suspect,” Gauntlett said.
Officers tried to revive the suspect. St. Cloud Fire Rescue arrived and took over attempts to save the suspect’s life.
He was pronounced dead at 1:01 p.m. The suspect was not named. His age was not revealed. Gauntlett described him as a “young male.”
Police think he also burglarized a recreational vehicle parked behind a house in the neighborhood. The officers, who were not named, were placed on administrative leave and were not hurt.
Snyder told Spectrum News 13 that she hopes her daughter will have some quality of life post-operation
“I don’t want her to look in the mirror every day for the rest of her life — and say, 'Look at all these scars — for what?'” Snyder said.
She said she won’t be satisfied until she knows the whole truth about what happened to her daughter.
“Hopefully this hasn’t scared her for the rest of her life. Hopefully she can get the counseling that she needs in this tough situation," said neighbor Shari Meredith.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will investigate the police shooting. St. Cloud will investigate the attack on the girl and other crimes in the neighborhood, Gauntlett said.
Gauntlett stressed that police only have preliminary information and several crime scenes, including the house where the girl was attacked.
“It is our understanding and belief that the suspect involved here was responsible for the assault and stabbing of this 9-year-old girl,” Gauntlett said.
He called the attack “horrific and totally unacceptable in our society today.”