A man died Tuesday afternoon during a traffic stop in St. Johns County, according to Sheriff Robert Hardwick.
Hardwick said investigators were called to the scene on Kingsland Court in Fruit Cove just before 4:30 p.m. He said a sheriff’s deputy had conducted a traffic stop in the Julington Creek area.
“After conducting the traffic stop, immediate gunfire was received,” Hardwick said. “The deputy, we know -- can confirm, fired one shot, and the deceased suspect white male fired one shot. At this time, we have a firearm with a deceased individual.”
The man was the only person inside the vehicle, Hardwick said. He added that there was no threat to the public. Additional details regarding the incident were not immediately clear.
“Everything happened very quickly and unfolded very fast,” Hardwick said.
The deputy, who was not identified, was not injured, Hardwick said. He said investigators were working to identify the driver of the vehicle.
Neighbors are shocked by what happened in what is typically a quiet neighborhood.
“I was shaking,” one neighbor said. “It was very scary.”