St. Petersburg

Rooftop Shooter Injures Self While Fleeing Deputies: Sheriff

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A Florida man shot at several people before a six-hour, rooftop standoff with sheriff's deputies, officials said.

The incident began around 8 p.m. Sunday when deputies were alerted to three “suspicious" men in an area of Dunedin, which is a suburb of St. Petersburg, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.

As the deputies pulled up, one man ran from them and shot at several people as he fled. No one was injured in the shooting, except for the gunman himself, deputies told news outlets.

Myles Abbott, 18, managed to shoot himself in the thigh during the incident, officials said.

He climbed onto a nearby roof and pointed a gun at deputies who were trying to arrest him. The deputies tried to talk to him, but he would not surrender. A SWAT team and negotiator arrived at the scene, and, eventually, Abbott's sister was brought in to help reach out to him. That didn't work either, deputies said.

Some six hours later, deputies used “specialized equipment" and bean bag rounds to force him off the roof.

Abbot was arrested on multiple charges including loitering, prowling, aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest without violence, records show.

He was taken to a hospital for treatment of his leg wound.

The sheriff's office said Abbott had an outstanding warrant for vehicular homicide.

Deputies also arrested two other people during the incident. Ki’moni Anderson, 18, was charged with grand theft of a firearm, carrying a concealed firearm and felon in possession of a firearm. A 16-year-old was also arrested on similar charges.

Jail records did not list attorneys who could speak on behalf of Abbott and Anderson.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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