POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – A man, who loved ones said was a marine engineer, has died, a week after being shot by a Broward Sheriff’s Office deputy in Pompano Beach, authorities confirmed Wednesday.
According to BSO, the body of Joseph Francis was taken from the hospital to the Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office on Tuesday.
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The shooting occurred late at night on Jan. 10 in the area of 600 Briny Ave.
“I thought it was fireworks. They are always setting (off) fireworks over here,” Megan Stanton, who lives in the area, told Local 10 News.
According to Carey Codd, a spokesman for the Broward Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to the scene after receiving a call shortly before 11 p.m. regarding an in-progress crime in the area.
Codd said an armed man physically attacked a deputy before pulling out a gun.
Deputies then fired at the suspect, striking the man, Codd said.
“We heard a second round go off -- it was probably five or six consecutive shots of boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, and then at that point, I knew it was a gunshots,” Corey Scruggs, who is visiting from North Carolina, said.
Jae Bennett, a friend of Francis’, said he was originally from Rhode Island.
“My gut feeling is this is a case of him being at the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Bennett. “He has no reason to be out committing any crimes.”
Authorities, however, confirmed that a weapon was recovered at the scene.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is handling the investigation into the shooting, as is standard protocol in a shooting involving a law enforcement official.