Residents still displaced after Thanksgiving Day standoff ends in deadly shooting

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Updated  November 29, 2024 7:34pm EST
FOX 35 Orlando
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Residents displaced after Thanksgiving standoff

Some residents at the Kingston Shores Condos remain unable to access their homes more than 24 hours after a violent Thanksgiving Day standoff ended with a Volusia County sheriff’s sniper killing the suspect.

ORMOND-BY-THE-SEA, Fla. - Some residents at the Kingston Shores Condos remain unable to access their homes more than 24 hours after a violent Thanksgiving Day standoff ended with a Volusia County sheriff’s sniper killing the suspect.  

The small condo community is still an active crime scene as investigators from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office process evidence.  

Julie Johnson, a resident evacuated during the incident, described the unsettling aftermath.  

"Yesterday was an odd feeling all day. Even waking up today and seeing all the yellow stickers and things out here," she said.  

According to authorities, the incident began when Joseph Difusco, a renter from Connecticut, fired hundreds of rounds at neighboring units and responding deputies.  

"My bedroom is right there. He was right over there. Didn’t see him. Just heard it. The shots," Johnson said.  

Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said Difusco, a convicted felon, fired more than 200 rounds during the hours-long standoff.  

"He was not going to negotiate. Every time we would try, he would fire on us. He turned off his phone. He was armed to the teeth," Chitwood said.  

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The 52-year-old suspect was ultimately killed by a sheriff’s office sniper after a standoff lasting more than five hours.  

Chitwood confirmed Difusco had at least three firearms, believed to have been brought from out of state.  

"He was armed for Armageddon," the sheriff said.  

Court records from Connecticut show Difusco was arrested in 2017 for carrying a weapon without a permit.  

Johnson, who returned to her unit late Thursday, credited neighbors and her dog, Baby, for keeping her safe.  

"Right before my husband died, he said, ‘Baby, you’re going to have to take care of your mom,’" she said. "And he has."  

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is conducting an investigation into the shooting, which is standard protocol. More details about Difusco and the incident are expected as the investigation continues.

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