The two Gilchrist County sheriff’s deputies who were fatally shot while eating at a Chinese restaurant in Florida on Thursday afternoon did not have the chance to return fire during the ambush attack, police confirmed to reporters during a Friday press conference.
“We have no information right now that our officers were able to return fire,” Lt. Scott Tummond, Levy County Sheriff Department’s public information officer, said Friday. “They were on duty and they were in uniform. Those two heroes walked in there to have a meal together and they were ambushed.”
Tummond added the alleged assailant, 59-year-old John Hubert Highnote, suffered a “self-inflicted” wound. Highnote was found by first responders in the parking lot outside Ace China in Trenton, Fla., located 25 miles west of Gainesville.
Police believe Highnote fatally shot Sgt. Noel Ramirez, 30, and Deputy Taylor Lindsay, 25, around 3 p.m. local time.
During a Thursday evening press conference and again on Friday morning, police officials said they have not confirmed the assailant’s motive, but said the demonization of law enforcement nationwide likely played a role in the unprovoked attack.
On Thursday, Gilchrist Sheriff Bobby Schultz said police have been “demonized” by “every type of hate.”
“Sgt. Ramirez and Deputy Lindsey were the best of the best. They were men of integrity, they were men of loyalty, they were God-fearing and they loved what they did and we’re very proud of them,” Schultz said.
Police have not identified the type of firearm the assailant used in the shooting.
The victims were carried out of the restaurant around 1 a.m. Friday and the crime scene is expected to remain closed to the public for the duration of the day.
