On April 15, a resident of Southwest Ranches, Florida, shot at the car of two people who mistakenly drove onto his property while trying to deliver an Instacart order, according to police. The two delivery workers, 19-year-old Waldes Thomas Jr. and 18-year-old Diamond Harley Darville, were trying to locate the address of the person who placed the order. They mistakenly drove onto the property of Antonio Caccavale, 43, leaving with bullet holes and a flat tire after Caccavale fired his Smith & Wesson Shield handgun.
Delivery workers tried to leave, but resident became aggressive
According to a report from the Davie Police Department, the delivery workers had trouble locating the address, and they pulled their car onto Caccavale’s property by mistake. Caccavale’s 12-year-old son approached the vehicle, and the workers attempted to reverse out of the property. However, they struck a boulder, and Caccavale allegedly aggressively approached the vehicle and grabbed at the driver’s side window. The workers began driving the car away when they heard three gunshots.
The resident said he fired because the car ran over his foot
Caccavale told investigators that he asked his son to tell the occupants to leave when he saw the vehicle on his property. He said he heard his son calling for help, and when he ran to his aid, the vehicle was driving erratically and hitting items on the property, such as boulders and fence posts. The car then reversed, sideswiped him, and ran over his right foot. Caccavale then fired several shots toward the tires to disable the vehicle. He said he wanted to disable the vehicle because it ran over his foot.
Police investigate, but unclear if a crime was committed
Police said that it was unclear if a crime had occurred and that each party appeared to be justified in their actions based on the circumstances they perceived. Broward County State Attorney Harold F. Pryor called the incident “very disturbing” and requested a full investigation and legal review from the police department. Once the police investigation is complete, prosecutors will review the evidence and applicable law to determine whether criminal charges should be filed.
Similar shootings of people who mistakenly ended up at the wrong address have occurred recently, including the shooting of Kaylin Gillis in upstate New York and Ralph Yarl in Kansas City.