Florida police have released body cam footage of a robbery suspect being shot by a police officer after confronting the officer with a knife while ignoring orders to drop the weapon.
“Drop the knife, drop the knife,” an officer from the Sarasota Police Department can be heard yelling at suspect Robert Briandi, 70, who they say had just attempted to snatch the purse of an 83-year-old woman loading her groceries into her car at a Publix, WTVT-TV reported.
“No, no,” Briandi responds. “I’m a sick person.”
Sarasota Police shot a man after he allegedly tried to rob an elderly woman
(Sarasota Police Department)
Briandi then takes several steps toward the officer at which point the officer opens fire.
The 911 calls came in to Sarasota Police around 10 a.m. Tuesday after Briandi allegedly tried to steal the purse from the elderly woman. When she fought back, others rushed in to assist her.
“She did a heck of a job fighting him off,” Captain John Todd, the Sarasota Police Department’s criminal investigation division commander, said. “She was attacked from behind with an assailant with a knife she did a really good job of protecting herself.”
70-year-old Robert Briandi
(Sarasota Police Department)
When Briandi fled, an onlooker recorded Briandi on a cell phone and followed him to a nearby Homewood Suites hotel.
“This good Samaritan went above and beyond the call of duty, but I think without his actions we might not of had such a quick conclusion of the event,” Todd said.
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Homewood Suites on Fruitville Road in Florida.
(Google Maps)
Briandi has a criminal record in New York and Florida that dates back to the 1970s, police say.
Briandi is said to be in stable condition following surgery.
