DELTONA, Fla. – A 39-year-old man was shot Saturday night in front of his two sons and nephew when two gunmen tried to steal the family's four-wheeler.
The Volusia County Sheriff's Office said the four-wheeler was in the back of a pickup truck that the man pulled into his driveway.
The man’s children said he was shot at three times but was able to drive away and get help.
"He said (he drove off) just to protect us. He just drove," Jarvis Britt Jr., 14, said.
He said he feels lucky to be alive. He, his brother, cousin and dad were on their way home from the movies and pulled into the driveway when two masked men pulled in behind them on Sable Avenue and jumped out of their car.
"They got out, ran out to the car and said, ‘Stop stop. We're not playing. We're not playing.' Then my dad pulled off and they just started shooting," Britt said.
His dad, Jarvis Britt Sr., 39, was shot near his right armpit, on his right forearm and left wrist, but he managed to drive to a nearby gas station.
"The only reason I know he was shot (was) because there was blood on the seat and a chunk of his arm was off,” the younger Jarvis Britt said.
Another son, Jamont, 12, was the only other person inside the truck to get hurt. He was cut by glass that was shattered by the gunfire. His finger is now wrapped in bandages.
"I was just scared," he said.
The kids said the two men wanted to rob their dad of his four-wheeler, which he was riding earlier on Delaware Street.
"Go get your own! He worked to get that,” Jarvis Jr. said.
"I hope they get caught and they go to prison, Jamont said.
The father is in the hospital, but he's expected to be OK.
His children called him a hero.
Authorities have not yet said if the ATV had anything to do with the incident but did confirm robbery was the motive.
The two men who fired the shots are still on the run and deputies have not yet said if they know who they are.