A former Florida sheriff’s office staffer made up a story about being carjacked by two Black men to cover accidentally shooting himself, authorities said Friday.
Dakotah Wood, a former telecommunicator with the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, is charged with tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, false reports of commission of crimes, and discharging a firearm in public or residential property.
“These types of situations are relatively rare, unfortunate, and unpleasant. My administration, however, has a very public reputation of holding my people accountable for their actions,” Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis said in a statement. “The public can be confident that when an employee does something of this nature, they will forfeit their ability to be associated with the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office.”
Wood called the police in the early morning hours of June 30 to report a shooting and attempted carjacking, the sheriff’s office said.
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He told investigators that he was at Linda Pedersen Park when two Black men tried to carjack him. He said they display a firearm and threatened to kill him, authorities said. Wood said one of the suspects then shot him in the thigh and collected the shell casing before fleeing.
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Wood said he got his personal firearm and fired five shots and struck one of the suspects several times. He was taken to a hospital for treatment for his gunshot wound.
When questioned by detectives, Wood allegedly said he made up the story. He said he went to the park because he was upset over issues with his girlfriend. While in his vehicle, he was “playing” with his firearm when it accidentally went off and struck him in the thigh, police said.
“Wood said he made up the story about the attempted carjacking because he did not want to get into trouble,” the sheriff’s office said.
He resigned from his job at the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office while being investigated. His bond was set at $7,000.
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