One deputy is dead and multiple others are injured following a shooting in Indian River County.
The deceased deputy, Terri Mashkow, 47, with 25 years of service, died in line of duty, and was killed in a Bermuda Club community residence, while responding to an eviction. The shooter is reported in critical condition.
It’s the second time a line-of-duty death has occurred in the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office.
During a news conference Nov. 21, Flowers said a suspect inside the home near Vero Beach “got a weapon and began firing indiscriminately” as the eviction notice was being served.
Here’s what we know.
How many were killed, injured in Florida shooting?
One deputy is dead and multiple others are injured following a shooting in Indian River County, Vero Beach Mayor John Cotugno confirmed to TCPalm.
The deceased deputy, Terri Mashkow, 47, with 25 years of service, died in line of duty, and was killed in a Bermuda Club community residence. Another deputy, Tino Arizpe, was shot in the shoulder and a locksmith is in critical condition, according to Sheriff Eric Flowers.
The suspect, Michael Halberstam, was also injured during the deputy-involved shooting, and is in critical conidition.
What happened at Bermuda Club residence before Vero Beach shooting?
Flowers said an eviction notice was being served at Bermuda Club on Orchid Island when multiple people were shot in what Flowers described as “an awful day” only six days before Thanksgiving.
A woman at the home was evicting her son, Michael Halberstam, 37.
Deputy Terri Mashkow, 47, “made the ultimate sacrifice” and was killed in the line of duty while inside the residence, Flowers said. She was a 25-year veteran with the Sheriff’s Office, starting as a dispatcher.
It’s unknown at this time whether Mashkow fired her weapon, Flowers said.
Who was Terri Mashkow, deputy killed in Vero Beach?
Deputy Terri Mashkow, 47, was fatally shot shortly before 8:57 a.m. at 1137 Governor’s Way, Vero Beach, Sheriff Eric Flowers said during an early afternoon press conference.
She was the second line-of-duty-death in the Sheriff’s Office’s 100-year history, Flowers said. She had 25 years of service under her belt.
She died during what Sheriff Eric Flowers described as an “everyday call” that left another deputy and a locksmith also wounded after a man started “indiscriminately” shooting at them during the serving of an eviction notice in the morning at the Bermuda Bay development south of the Wabasso Causeway, according to Sheriff Eric Flowers.
Who was at the scene of the fatal shooting in Vero Beach, Florida?
Flowers said three deputies and a locksmith who has not been identified were at the home to serve an eviction notice.
“While they were at the entryway … Mr. Halberstam retrieved a weapon and began indiscriminately firing at our deputies.”
The locksmith was in critical condition and in surgery early Friday afternoon, Flowers said. A 25-year veteran with the Sheriff’s Office, Deputy Tino Arizpe, with the department was shot in the shoulder. He’s recovering at Lawnwood, Flowers said. Sgt. Gary Farless returned fire and was not injured.
Who is Michael Halberstam, suspect in Vero Beach shooting?
Michael Halberstam, 47, shot and killed Indian River County sheriff’s Deputy Terri Mashkow, Sheriff Eric Flowers said. Halberstam also shot and injured another deputy and a locksmith after his mother wanted him removed from her house, Flowers said. Flowers said early Nov. 21, Halberstam was in surgery and in critical condition.
He had a 2006 narcotics charge and a 2015 assault charge, both in Virginia.
Halberstam was arrested in nearly a decade later in Virginia on an “assault charge,”, the sheriff said. Halberstam was arrested in April 2015 in Fauquier County, Virginia, but the charge was dropped, records show.
His mother called authorities about seven times in the past month to his Governors Way barrier island home in the Bermuda Club on Orchid Island, just north of Vero Beach. She “ultimately” wanted him evicted, Flowers said.
The Sheriff’s Office has responded to the residence seven times in November, almost all from the mother calling about him and her decision to evict him from the home, Flowers said.
Gov. Ron DeSantis reacts to deputy killing
Gov. Ron DeSantis and other top Florida officials addressed the shooting in Indian River County.
“There is a lot going on. Just know (the) Florida Department of Law Enforcement is engaged, working with the sheriff and the local community. We will hope for the best results of that,” DeSantis said.
Attorney General James Uthemeier also gave a statement.
“We are praying for the brave officers who put their lives on the line to protect Florida and our families,” Uthemeier said.
Senators Rick Scott and Ashley Moody in social media posts called the day “tragic” and “heartbreaking” and sent wishes of recovery to the survivors.
Where is Bermuda Club, the location of the shooting that killed Deputy Terri Mashkow?
The shootings occurred at the Bermuda Club off State Road A1A in Indian River County. The community is located less than a mile south of Disney’s Vero Beach Resort and about three miles north of Indian River Shores.
Vero Beach is located on Florida’s east coast, about 50 miles south of Cape Canaveral or 90 miles southeast of Orlando.
Contributing: Keith Burbank, Jack Lemnus, Corey Arwood, Wicker Perlis, Olivia Franklin, Laura Lemmon, Colleen Wixon and Gianna Montesano, tcpalm.com; and Hana Khalyleh, USA TODAY Network-Florida
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Deputy Terri Mashkow killed in Vero Beach shooting: What we know so far
Reporting by Cheryl McCloud and Hana Khalyleh, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / Treasure Coast Newspapers
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
