Police investigate an officer shooting incident near Soutel Drive that left a 20-year-old man dead after an armed robbery, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said. | News4Jax
Published on July 9, 2025 at 11:28 am
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A police officer was injured this morning in a shootout on Soutel Drive that left a 20-year-old man dead, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said.
Officer Luis Mercado III is in stable condition after the shooting, which happened as he was arresting the man after an armed robbery at a store near Soutel Drive and Norfolk Avenue in the Brentwood community, police said.
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The man refused orders to stop, then fired twice at Mercado as he was being tackled. That’s when the four-year veteran officer fired back, Sheriff T.K. Waters said during a news conference.
“He fired enough to get the job done, so we don’t have to worry about that guy anymore,” Waters said. “And it may sound cold, it may sound crass, but if a person will shoot at a policeman for doing his job after he just committed an armed robbery, he’ll shoot at anyone, so we don’t have to be concerned with him anymore. But he did shoot at our officer — he shot twice. He shot him once, through the leg.”
The incident started when a man was seen checking out the store after 7 a.m., just before it opened, Chief Alan Parker said. Once the store opened, a customer saw a man wearing a mask inside. Then a witness heard someone tell the shop clerk to “give me the money or I’ll shoot you.” The exchange was caught on the store’s security video, Parker said.
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A customer gave police a description, and a responding officer spotted someone matching it running on Norfolk Avenue. Mercado arrived and began chasing the man on foot, then tackled him, Parker said.
“He’s giving him repeated commands to stop, drop, get on the ground,” Parker said. “As he is taking him into custody, (Mercado) takes him down on the ground. The suspect is dropping the money at the scene. As the officer is on top of him, getting ready to secure him, the suspect kind of moves to his right and fires two rounds.”
This is the 10th officer shooting so far this year, Parker said.
Police did not identify the dead man but said he had an extensive criminal record and had been released from state prison in May 2024.
This was Mercado’s first officer shootings.
The State Attorney’s Office is investigating the case.
The man, not named, has an extensive criminal record and had just been released from prison a year ago, police say.
This is the 10th officer shooting this year, police say.
