PUNTA GORDA — Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell started his media conference Thursday thanking the community for the outpouring of support for Sgt. Elio Diaz and his family, as well as for the law enforcement agency.
A veteran deputy, a husband and father of four children, Diaz was shot and killed Sunday night during a traffic stop at a Charlotte Harbor gas station.
Deputies killed his apparent assailant about an hour later in the parking lot of a Popeyes restaurant roughly 6 miles away.
“I’d like to thank you all and our community members for their show of support for Elio,” Prummell said. “It really means a lot.”
Hundreds of those community members attended a memorial and viewing to pay their respects for Diaz on Thursday afternoon at Charlotte Memorial Funeral Home in Punta Gorda.
Gary Dougherty, an American Legion Post 110 member and historian, was among those who attended
“The guy is a hero. All these guys in uniforms are heroes,” Dougherty said.
Walking into the viewing, he went on to salute members of law enforcement, thanking them for their service and extending his condolences.