LAKE COUNTY, Fla. – A man was found dead inside a stolen recreational vehicle after a standoff in Lake County that prompted the closure of U.S. Highway 27, sheriff’s officials said.
The standoff with deputies took place Wednesday morning on U.S. Highway 27 at Lake Louisa State Park.
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Lake County sheriff’s spokesman Lt. Fred Jones said the incident began just after 2 a.m. in Leesburg when deputies began a pursuit of the RV, stolen in Flagler County about two weeks ago, as the man drove erratically and, at times, in the wrong lane of traffic.
Jones said deputies used Stop Sticks to halt the RV on U.S. 27.
“The subject(s) inside then proceeded to close the blinds,” the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said in an email.
Investigators then tried to make contact with the man, later identified as 37-year-old Richard Louis William, but were not successful, Jones said.
“The SWAT team did breach the vehicle at which time they found the subject dead,” Jones said.
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Deputies are negotiating with a barricaded subject in a recreational vehicle on US Hwy 27 at Lake Louisa State Park. Currently, Hwy 27 is shut down in both directions. Please use SR 33 or toll road 429 as alternates. We will update as soon as the situation is safely resolved.
— LakeCountySO (@LakeCountySO) September 14, 2022
Alachua County authorities received an anonymous call from someone saying there was a man surrounded by law enforcement who was overdosing, according to Jones, who added that SWAT team members then cut into the RV and found the man dead.
William had no visible wounds, according to Jones, who said no gunshots were fired at the scene and no guns were located in the vehicle. His cause of death is under investigation.
“It may take some time to find out the why. Hopefully, we make contact with that person who he called and we can get more answers from there,” Jones said.
No one else was inside the RV, and it’s not known who stole the vehicle.
“We don’t even know if he stole it. Did he get it from someone? Those are answers we’re looking for,” Jones said.
U.S. Highway 27 was closed in both directions, but the roadway was reopened when the standoff ended.
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