Deputy Dean Bardes was working a crash along Interstate 75 when a car raced past at an estimated 120 mph. The Estero, Fla., officer kicked into high-speed pursuit and forced the car off the road. That’s when the armed suspect jumped out, raced towards Bardes and tackled him to the ground.
Luckily, a driver was passing the struggle—a man carrying a gun and his concealed weapons license. The good Samaritan stopped, approached, told the suspect he would shoot if the attack didn’t stop, then fired three shots when the warning was ignored. Early responders gave the suspect CPR, but he was pronounced dead, while Bardes was treated and released.
Another driver who witnessed the incident told WINK News, “There was a man on top of another man; they were struggling … then I heard three shots … the man who was sitting on top of the police officer fell to the side … the police officer got up.”
