VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Transcripts of the confession of the man accused of shooting a Volusia County deputy show what he happened leading up to the shooting. Luis Diaz Polanco is charged with opening fire on deputies in Deltona in March, hitting one of them multiple times.
News 6 filed a motion in the case asking the court to ensure the portion of the confession that would normally be available to the public remained accessible. Polanco’s defense team had sought to have the entire confession sealed.
The State Attorney’s Office provided News 6 with a 54-page transcript of Polanco’s interview with investigators the night of the shooting. While many details about the shooting itself remain redacted, the transcript reveals details about Polanco’s mental state at the time and what led up to the incident.
Polanco told investigators he was off his medication for schizophrenia. He also told them he purchased the gun from a man who had also sold him marijuana, but said he never expected to use it. Polanco said his day started badly and that he originally obtained the gun only to threaten a friend of his mother’s he had argued with earlier that morning.
Later that day, investigators say Deputy Jose Rivera and his trainee responded to Polanco’s home to question him about a vandalism call. Body camera video shows Polanco open the door, slam it, then return with a gun and open fire.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood described what investigators were able to recover from that body camera footage.
“Now, what we haven’t shown you yet is we were able to recover about five seconds of Deputy Rivera’s body camera footage. And what you see clearly is the defendant come out, point his arm and fire that first shot that disables the cameras. So the first shot hits the deputy in the chest. And then now, as the medical records are coming in, it looks like he was hit a total of three times with those rounds,” Chitwood said.
Although details about the shooting are redacted from the confession transcript, Polanco’s original arrest report shows he admitted he intentionally aimed at the deputies’ chests, believing their ballistic vests would protect them. The report also indicates he would have continued shooting had he not run out of ammunition.
Polanco has pleaded not guilty to all charges. He is scheduled to return to court next month.