FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – There was a massive police presence in Fort Lauderdale’s Harbordale area Thursday morning after a city police officer was shot.
It happened in a hotel room at the Holiday Inn Express at 1500 SE 17th St., according to police.
Police Chief Bill Schultz said just after 7:30 a.m., a caller reported that he had killed someone inside of a hotel room.
Officers entered the room and exchanged gunfire with the suspect, who barricaded himself in the room, Schultz said. He said one officer was struck by gunfire.
The suspect, who police identified as Karl Chludinsky, 46, of Margate, was found dead inside of the room by SWAT officers, according to Fort Lauderdale police spokesperson Casey Liening.
Liening also confirmed that the wounded officer was released from Broward Health Medical Center on Thursday and is expected to make a full recovery.
A second officer was injured and treated at the scene but was not shot, Schultz said.
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Sue Riggs, who was visiting Fort Lauderdale for the first time, told Local 10 News that she immediately went into hiding after hearing the gunshots nearby.
“I jumped up and went into a men’s room right there and it is all concrete and steel,” she said. “We couldn’t figure out why they knew he was there in that room. That makes sense.”
Hotel guest Luis Castaneda said he and a group of bystanders were directed by a police officer to a nearby conference room for safety.
“She was like, ‘Everybody, get into this conference room!’ They put us in there, they locked it and turned the lights off.”' she said.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the police shooting. The three officers who opened fire are on paid leave pending the outcome of the investigation, Schultz said.
Local 10 News went to Chludinsky’s home to speak with family members about the incident but no one answered.
Neighbors say he was going through a bit of depression following a recent divorce but are still shocked this happened.
“I would’ve never expected anything like this. He was always a sweet man toward us,” a woman said. “Even though he was going through some hard times, you could tell he was trying to push through.”
A Broward County arrest photo from 2019 shows Chludinsky after he was arrested on charges of driving under the influence and drug possession.
Police said a motive for the shooting remains unclear at this time and stressed that there is no threat to the community.
4 p.m. live report