OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – A local family is outraged and demanding answers after 31-year-old Derik Bonet Rodriguez died following a confrontation with Osceola County deputies early Sunday morning, during which he was shocked with a Taser.
According to the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, a patrol deputy saw Bonet Rodriguez running in and out of traffic in the westbound lanes of North Main Street near Vine Street around 6:30 a.m. in Kissimmee.
Deputies said a struggle occurred as they tried to restrain him. One deputy fired a Taser and placed Bonet Rodriguez in handcuffs. Shortly after, he became unresponsive.
Deputies said they performed CPR and transported him to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. However, his family claims they’ve been left in the dark, saying deputies haven’t shared the autopsy report, body camera footage, or any other information related to the incident.
Aracelis Rodriguez, the victim’s mother, and other family members are now searching for answers.
“No mother wants to have her children gone,” said Mara Lim, Derik’s cousin.
As Rodriguez spoke through tears in Spanish, Lim translated, “He was special to her. That’s what she said.”
Lim said the family is especially frustrated by the lack of transparency. “We don’t know anything—just speculation and theories in our heads,” she said. “Did they not try? Did they not realize he wasn’t mentally all there because he was on the spectrum?”
The family also said that Bonet Rodriguez had limited understanding of English, which may have added confusion to the situation. They’re now pushing to obtain body camera footage and the autopsy report to better understand what happened.
“Knowing a concrete answer would probably help in a way,” Lim said. “Just to get there. But the loss
— even over time — it’s always gonna be there.”
According to Lim, deputies told the family that an autopsy had been completed but said the report wouldn’t be released for another 13 weeks. Still, the family says they want answers now.
News 6 reached out to the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office for comment but has not received a response as of Wednesday evening.
The family said they plan to hold Bonet Rodriguez’s funeral on Sunday in Puerto Rico, where he grew up.
A GoFundMe has been created to help the family.