Volusia County

Man armed with 2 knives injured after deputy-involved shooting, sheriff’s office says

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — The sheriff’s office said that a man was shot and injured after charging at a Volusia County deputy.

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According to a news release, Michael Collmar, 43, armed himself with two knives at his parents’ home on Lakeshore Drive in New Smyrna Beach in an “erratic mental health episode.”

Read: Investigation underway after deputy-involved shooting in New Smyrna Beach

Deputies said they tried to talk to Collmar, but after they were unsuccessful, they entered the house through the back door and used a taser and a less-lethal shotgun to try to stop him.

Collmar went out the front door, charged at a deputy outside the house, and then the deputy fired at Collmar, who fell to the ground, deputies said.

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Deputies treated Collmer at the scene and transported him to a hospital, where he underwent surgery Sunday evening.

Investigators said Collmar’s parents nor any of the deputies involved were injured.

Volusia County deputies received the call around 1 p.m. and said this was the second call in the last three weeks of a similar incident involving Collmar and two knives.

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Deputies said Collmar’s mother had reported on Jan. 17 that he was armed, hallucinating and screaming during a mental health episode. After deputies could not communicate with Collmer, they referred him to counseling services.

Neighbors nearby said the road had been blocked several times before Sunday.

The sheriff’s office said that this year, all of the calls for service in that area have come from the same home - Collmar’s parents’ home.

“It’s a little disturbing when things happen like that in your neighborhood,” Vickie Luksan said.

Collmar was released from prison last October after he stabbed a man in 2017. Volusia County deputies said Collmar also faces over 30 felonies and 30 misdemeanor charges in Florida.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is conducting a standard investigation of Sunday’s shooting.

A press conference is scheduled for Monday morning, where Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood will give an update. The sheriff’s office is also expected to release body camera footage during that time.

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