“If you don’t believe in God, you believe in him tonight,” declared Volusia County Sheriff, Mike Chitwood, capturing the gravity of a life-threatening encounter that unfolded in Deltona, Florida.
In a dramatic turn of events, a Florida deputy’s body camera became an unexpected shield, potentially saving his life during an intense shootout. The incident involved Deputy Jose Rivera of the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, who was responding to a domestic battery call on Monday night.
Upon arriving at the scene, Rivera and another deputy knocked on the door of a residence. Luis Diaz Polanco, a 31-year-old man, answered, appearing startled at the deputies’ presence. Sheriff Chitwood recounted how the deputies requested Polanco to set down a box he was holding. Instead, Polanco abruptly shut the door and retreated inside, prompting Rivera to instruct his partner to cover the back exit.
The situation escalated when Polanco re-emerged, opening the box to reveal a Glock firearm. A sudden exchange of gunfire ensued between Polanco and Deputy Rivera. Sheriff Chitwood described a harrowing moment where a bullet pierced directly through Rivera’s body camera, deflecting off his shoulder and then striking his leg.
Chitwood said that Polanco came back out the front door, opened the box, took out a Glock and began a shootout with Rivera.
After a shot was fired, Chitwood says a bullet went “dead center” through Rivera’s body cam, ricocheted through his shoulder and then took another shot to his leg.
“If you don’t believe in God, you believe in him tonight,” he said.
Other deputies were able to bring Rivera to safety and take Polanco out of the house and place him in custody.
Rivera was airlifted to a hospital and was said to be in “excellent spirits,” Chitwood said.
“You’ve got to believe in God if you’re in a gun battle in that distance,” he said. “There is no room except for divine intervention.”
Polanco faces charges of attempted murder and is also being investigated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Chitwood said that Polanco has previous incidents of violent behavior and struggles with mental health issues.
