Elderly Man Dies After Being Shot By Pasco Sheriff's Deputies

HUDSON, FL — A 79-year-old man has died after being shot by Pasco County sheriff's deputies Saturday morning.

James Zambrotto died Monday evening. He had been in the hospital since Saturday's shooting.

According to Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco, a deputy pulled into the RaceTrac gas station at the intersection of U.S. 19 and Little Road to get some gas and coffee around 6 a.m. and encountered Zambrotto who was talking about wanting to kill people.

“He starts talking to the deputy, rambling stuff about how he wants to kill somebody. He wants to drive his vehicle into the gas pumps to kill people,” Nocco said.

Nocco said the deputy talked with Zambrotto for about 15 minutes, attempting to calm him down.

“From my understanding, the deputy offered him a cup of coffee and said, ‘Let’s talk about this. Let’s try to figure out what’s going on in your life and help you out,'” Nocco said.

Realizing the man wasn't calming down, the deputy called for backup and a hostage negotiator and deputies trained in crisis intervention were sent to the scene.

They spoke to Zambrotto for about 40 minutes but, instead of calming down, Nocco said Zambrotto drove his vehicle into one of the patrol cars blocking the gas station exit. A few moments later, Nocco said Zambrotto started shooting at deputies through his windshield.

The deputies returned fire, striking him.

Zambrotto was rushed to the hospital following the shooting. No deputies were injured.

Nocco said deputies tried everything possible to prevent Zambrotto from becoming violent.

“It’s a tragedy, we wish to God nobody was harmed today, but because of his actions we had to take action. That action may have prevented him from harming someone else,” Nocco said.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is taking the lead on the investigation since the shooting involved a deputy.

The FDLE released body camera footage from the five deputies involved in the shooting.

This footage shows the beginning of the incident when Zambrottowas approached a deputy at the gas pumps and shows deputies setting up stop sticks to prevent Zambrotto from leaving while other spoke with him after he stated he wanted to hurt himself and others.

The video also shows Zambrotto being pepper-sprayed while deputies attempt to get him to put down the gun he was holding. Zambrotto then rams into a patrol car and fires at the deputies, who return fire.

Zambrotto did not have a criminal history with the Pasco County Sheriff's Office and had no documented history of mental illness.