Hillsborough County deputies Carlos Brito, 39, and Manny Santos, 31, severely injured but expected to live

Two Florida sheriff’s deputies were seriously injured Thursday, when a man with a lengthy criminal history “intentionally” plowed his car into them in an ambush attack in which he was “determined to kill deputy sheriffs,” authorities said.

One of the injured deputies may possibly have his leg amputated as a result, Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister told reporters at the scene.

“These deputies never had a chance,” he said. “These deputies‘ lives are changed forever.”

Hillsborough County deputies were answering a 911 call from a woman who said her adult son was acting irrationally and violently and that she was afraid of him, Chronister said. The suspect, Ralph Bouzy, 28, was sitting in a running car outside his home in the Heather Lakes subdivision in the Tampa suburb of Brandon and took off when the deputies tried to make contact with him.

Bodycam footage shows a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s deputy on the ground after a suspect rammed his vehicle into a police cruiser.  (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)

Bouzy returned a short time later, sped up and rammed the deputies, pinning them against a patrol vehicle, the sheriff said. Both suffered severe leg injuries but were expected to survive.

Video footage released by the sheriff’s office shows Bouzy’s vehicle driving on a residential street at a high speed toward the two deputies who were standing next to a sheriff’s cruiser.

They tried jumping out of the way just before Bouzy smashed into the police vehicle. After the crash, one of the deputies is seen on the ground while Bouzy gets out of his totaled vehicle and casually walks toward his home. He continued to ignore commands by two deputies, who both pointed Tasers at him.

He was tased seconds later and fell to the ground before being taken into custody.

Emergency personnel and sheriff’s deputies reconcile at the scene where two law enforcement officers were deliberately struck with a vehicle, Brandon, Florida, Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023. (Luis Santana/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

“There is no other way to describe this other than an ambush,” Chronister said. “He chose today to use his car as a weapon. They didn’t have a chance to get out of the way.”

The two injured deputies were identified as Cpl. Carlos Brito, 39, and 31-year-old Deputy Manny Santos. A piece of Britos’ femur bone was stuck between both vehicles and his leg was in danger of having to be amputated, Chronister said. Santos also sustained a “bilateral break” leg injury.

They were both taken to Tampa General Hospital where Brito underwent surgery.

“You can imagine the type of pain they were in,” Chronister said.

The vehicle driver by Ralph Bouzy, 28, after crashing into a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and two deputies.  (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)

Bouzy is charged with the attempted murder of law enforcement officers. Chronister said the man previously was arrested for three felonies and 14 misdemeanors, and that he had previously expressed hostility toward law enforcement.

He was previously arrested in connection with a 2017 hit-and-run and punched a deputy in the face. While in custody, he said he hated law enforcement and was going to kill a deputy sheriff. source

Ex-chemistry student accused of injecting opioid under neighbor’s door used university lab to mix dangerous toxins

Xuming Li, 36, was seen injecting a liquid under a neighboring family’s door on several occasions, according to a police report. The liquid tested positive for the narcotics methadone and hydrocodone.

A Florida man was arrested and charged with injecting a chemical agent with a syringe under the door of his neighbor’s condo, police say, an act of battery allegedly caught on video that was released this week.

Xuming Li, 36, was seen injecting a liquid under a neighboring family’s door at Oxford Place at Tampa Palms ‘”on several occasions,” according to a police report. The liquid tested positive for the narcotics methadone and hydrocodone.

Methadone and hydrocodone are used to treat pain. Side effects for both narcotics can include restlessness, stomach pain, vomiting, difficulty breathing, skin irritation, chest pain, diarrhea, hallucinations and fainting, according to the Mayo Clinic.

 

Umar Abdullah installed a hidden camera outside his condo after he smelled chemicals in his home and his 10-month-old baby started vomiting, NBC affiliate in Tampa WFLA reported.

Tampa Fire Rescue responded to the family’s home “on several occasions” but weren’t able to determine the cause of the smell, according to a Tampa Police Department report.

Surveillance footage showed Abdullah’s downstairs neighbor, Li, injecting a liquid through his condo’s doorway. Li had previously made noise complaints to Abdullah, according to WFLA.

“Even during war, the worst enemies do not attack the opponent, the other party, with chemicals,” Abdullah told WFLA.

Abdullah, his wife and their child suffered shortness of breath and eye and skin irritation from inhaling the chemicals for over a month, according to the police report.

During investigation of the home, an officer who was exposed to the chemicals also experienced skin irritation and received medical treatment.

Li was arrested on June 27 and charged with one count of felony aggravated stalking, three counts of dispersing a chemical agent and one count of possession of a controlled substance. He was also charged with battery on a law enforcement officer for exposing an officer to the chemicals.

The Oxford Place at Tampa Palms Condominium Association filed a complaint against Li on July 19 in the thirteenth judicial circuit court to provide a final judgement of eviction.

The association claims Li breached his contract when he allegedly injected chemicals into his neighbor’s unit, making residents feel unsafe.

The association also requests the court to grant an injunction requiring Li to “immediately cease and desist of any harassment, threats of physical violence, assault, battery, intimidation and quality of life,” as well as pay $50,000 in damages and the association’s attorney’s fees. source

Ex-chemistry student accused of injecting opioid under neighbor’s door used university lab to mix dangerous toxins

He’s a lab rat.

The Florida chemistry whiz charged with injecting opioids underneath his neighbor’s front door — because of a noisy toilet seat — used the laboratory at his university to carefully mix the dangerous toxins, according to court papers obtained by The Post.

Xuming Li, 36, used a “laboratory on the University of South Florida campus to mix and load liquid syringes on multiple occasions with the intent to harm residents of the condominium,” the breach of contract filing by the building’s owners association states.

Li was a Ph.D. chemistry student at the university until summer 2023, USF confirmed to WFLA.

The chemist was arrested on June 27 after his neighbor, Umar Abdullah, caught him on a hidden camera crouching down and squirting a clear liquid into a crack in the door

A hazmat test revealed the “liquid chemical agent” contained a combination of methadone and hydrocodone — both opioid pain medications.

Word of the shocking poisonings sent other residents of the Oxford Place at Tampa Palms into a state of panic, according to the suit, which seeks to boot Li and his co-owner roommate from the complex.

“The actions by defendant have risen to the point that residents and owners feel unsafe within their properties and the condominium,” the filing states.

In a statement, the University of South Florida said, “The safety and well-being of the USF community is our highest priority. The USF Department of Chemistry has several safeguards in place to ensure all chemicals and other materials owned by the university for teaching and research purposes are accounted for and used properly.

USF’s chemistry labs do not house chemicals that are classified as Schedule II controlled substances, which includes hydrocodone and methadone.”

Abdullah told local outlet us that he, his pregnant wife, and their young daughter moved into the complex directly above Li in June 2022.

Li soon began sending angry texts to his new neighbors, complaining that he was losing sleep over the sound of a toilet seat clanging.

Soon after, the family suddenly began experiencing unexplained bouts of nausea and dizziness.

“I look at my daughter,” Abdullah recalled. “Her eyes were full of tears. She was not crying, but her eyes were full of tears.”

A family friend first noticed a chemical odor while grabbing a package for them while they were away on vacation.

Abdullah then also noticed the scent and suspected an issue with his water heater.

However, the stench persisted even after he replaced the appliance and had his air ducts and vents cleaned.

Desperate for a resolution, he called the fire department, who conducted tests but found nothing amiss.

“I never thought after all this that no,” Abdullah said. “I’m just imagining this. No.”

He eventually noticed a small crack in his doorway and began to suspect his disgruntled neighbor.

After falling ill yet again, he set up a hidden camera outside his door and was shocked to see Li crouching down and emptying a syringe under his front door.

“We were shaking,” Abdullah recalled to WFLA. “We can’t imagine that he is coming and doing something.” source