A Punta Gorda Police officer fired a taser at a 91-year-old man suffering from dementia after he threatened staff workers.
Police responded to the Sterling House on Wednesday at approximately 9:41 p.m. after receiving a disturbance call.
When officers arrived, they found 91-year-old resident, Daniel Diaz, walking in the common area without assistance, according to a report.
Officers tried to convince Diaz to sit down on the couch, but he became agitated and continued.
Diaz advised officers he felt that the staff wanted to hurt him and made statements such as , " go ahead and shoot me" and :give me your gun and I'll shoot myself." He then stated, "I want to kill every one of them," according to a report.
After multiple attempts of trying to calm Diaz down, an officer decided to take Diaz into custody under Baker Act for the safety of residents and staff members.
After failed attempts to take him into custody, officers were able to get Diaz down on the couch he was sitting on, but he fell over onto his side.
After Diaz made an attempt to bite one of the officers with his bare teeth, one of the officers drew his taser at Diaz.
Diaz immediately stopped resisting and fighting. He was then transported to the Bayfront Health Punta Gorda for medical clearance.
Diaz was later transported to Riverside Behavioral center.
