A LaBelle man is recovering after being shot four times in his own yard by a Hendry County sheriff's deputy last month.
23-year-old Tyrone Reed, Jr., suffered gunshot wounds to his abdomen, knee, shoulder and buttocks, according to the News-Press. The shooting by police occurred amid an annual festival in LaBelle that celebrates black heritage, nearly two weeks after Governor Ron DeSantis's stay-at-home order was lifted.
The festival turned chaotic when an unknown shooter fired shots that sent festival attendees running. Reed says he was unarmed and had his hands up when he was shot. Eyewitnesses say Hendry County Sgt. Nestor Echevarria was the shooter and that some 26 to 30 rounds were fired outside Reed's home. Another man was also shot in the leg.
Reed is recovering after a two-week stay and multiple surgeries at Lee Memorial Hospital to remove bullets from his intestines and buttocks. He'll need more surgeries to remove the bullets lodged in his knee and shoulder.
All the information in the three-page incident report about the shooting were redacted aside from Reed's address and the date. The Hendry County Sheriff's Office has declined to comment, as has the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which is investigating the shooting.