Child sex battery suspect dies in officer-involved shooting in St. Augustine

A suspect wanted out of the Northeast US has been fatally shot in an incident at a hotel near the St. Augustine Outlets.

St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office Commander Chuck Mulligan says the US Marshals Fugitive Task Force got information about the suspect being in the area. Along with SJSO, they responded to the Howard Johnson off State Road 16, near I-95 and the Outlets, where they told the suspect to come out.

When the suspect exited the hotel room, he made some actions which led multiple Marshals and Deputies to fire simultaneously, according to Mulligan. What those actions are, are still under investigation. Mulligan says it’s also unclear at this time how many times the suspect was shot or how many law enforcement officers fired.

“We’re not going to get too far ahead of ourselves; we’re not going to get into speculation and conjecture. We’re going to let the investigators do what they do. That will take ALL night long, I assure you,” says Mulligan.

SJSO is not identifying the suspect at this time, as they have not yet been able to notify his next of kin.

Mulligan says he was wanted out of the Northeast US for aggravated sexual battery on a child under 15-years-old. He says the suspect was also on probation for other criminal issues, but did not elaborate on those charges.

It’s also unclear whether or not he was armed, as they need a warrant to access his hotel room.

No law enforcement officers were hurt.