FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Fort Lauderdale Police Department released a critical incident briefing video containing officer bodycam footage from an intense gun battle that occurred in the hallway of a local hotel on Thursday.
The incident began when Fort Lauderdale police received a 911 call at 7:30 a.m. from a man staying at the Holiday Inn Express, located in the 1500 block of SE 17th Street. The individual claimed he had killed someone inside his room and rambled on about his wife being raped.
The male caller also threatened to shoot first responders with multiple firearms in his possession, and said he was “not afraid to kill anyone.”
By 8:42 a.m., the hotel was cleared, and responding officers – unsure whether there was another person in the room – ordered the suspect to come out with his hands up, Fox News reported.
When the door opened, the gunman began firing on a group of police officers, who were in tight quarters within the hallway on the sixth floor and had no place to take cover.
The gunman slammed the door, but the gun battle continued through the closed door.
Major Patrick Hart, who narrated the bodycam footage, said that Officer Jack DiCristofalo tried to coax the suspect out of his room peacefully.
DiCristofalo repeatedly yelled, “Come out with your hands up,” as officers congregated nearby. During the ordeal, the officer was shot and injured, but his vest saved his life.
A bullet struck Officer Jack DiCristofalo and lodged into his vest. (Fort Lauderdale Police Department)
“It is important to note that our officers were acting on information that there could potentially be a victim inside the hotel room with the suspect,” Major Hart said. “When officers attempted to make entry, the suspect fired at the officers through the door.”
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The initial gun battle ended and a SWAT team eventually made entry into the room. The gunman, identified as 46-year-old Karl Chludinsky, was found dead inside. It’s unclear if he was killed during the exchange of gunfire or died by suicide.
The gunman, Karl Chludinsky, was found dead inside the hotel roo. (Fort Lauderdale Police Department)
DiCristofalo was treated at a nearby hospital and released the same day, according to police.
The state Department of Law Enforcement will conduct the officer-involved shooting (OIS) investigation.
