A Florida sheriff’s deputy survived a sudden knife attack after investigators say a man ambushed him the moment he stepped out of his patrol vehicle, knocked him to the ground, and repeatedly stabbed him in the chest.
WKMG News 6 ClickOrlando reported, in an article by digital journalist Haley Coomes, that the Marion County Sheriff’s Office is crediting Deputy Robert Fitch’s bulletproof vest with saving his life after the violent encounter Wednesday evening in Dunnellon, Florida.
The attack happened around 5 p.m. after Fitch responded to the area of 11775 NW 10th Place for a suspicious person call, Coomes reported. According to the sheriff’s office, the suspect, identified as 38-year-old Heriberto Medina Marquez, lunged at Fitch with a knife as soon as the deputy exited his vehicle.
A Suspicious Person Call Turned Into An Ambush
Body camera footage released in the case shows how quickly the scene changed from a routine contact into a life-threatening fight.
At the beginning of the video, Fitch can be heard casually greeting someone near his patrol vehicle, saying, “Hey partner,” and then, “Hey buddy.” Within seconds, the tone of the encounter shifts sharply as the deputy reacts to the attack and calls for help over the radio.
Coomes reported that Medina Marquez knocked Fitch to the ground and stabbed him multiple times in the chest. In the bodycam footage, Fitch later tells responding deputies that he had been on the ground while the suspect continued striking his chest.
“He had something in his hand. I can’t confirm if it was a knife, but I was on the ground, and he was steady, hitting my chest, but my vest got it,” Fitch says in the video, according to the footage and Coomes’ report.
That line is the center of the story because it turns what could have been a fatal ambush into a survival case. The vest did exactly what it was meant to do, absorbing the blows long enough for Fitch to stay alive, get back into the fight, and radio critical information to other units.
“My Vest Got It”
In the bodycam footage, Fitch alerts dispatch and other responding units that the suspect is a Hispanic male in a green shirt who ran into the woods and may have a knife.
The radio traffic is tense but controlled, with the deputy giving a direction of travel and warning others that the suspect may still be armed. That is not a small detail; after being attacked at close range, Fitch still managed to communicate enough information to help other deputies locate the suspect before he could disappear or hurt someone else.
Another deputy soon sees Medina Marquez crossing the road with something in his left hand. The bodycam footage captures the responding deputy ordering him to get on the ground, repeatedly warning that he has a knife.
“Lay down on the ground now,” the deputy shouts in the video. “Drop what you got and get on the ground now.”
The footage shows deputies keeping distance, giving clear commands, and focusing on the knife as they move in to make the arrest. One deputy warns Medina Marquez not to reach for anything and tells him the knife will be kicked away.
Suspect Taken Into Custody Near The Woods
Coomes reported that Medina Marquez fled into a nearby wooded area after the attack, but later emerged close to where deputies were searching.
Deputies took him into custody without further incident, according to the sheriff’s office. Investigators later recovered two folding knives at the scene, both with suspected fresh blood on them, Coomes reported.
The bodycam video shows the emotional aftermath of the arrest, with one deputy telling the suspect that he had come at him quickly and that the situation nearly ended in deadly force. The footage also captures Medina Marquez making a disturbing statement after he was detained.
“I should have killed you, you know that, right?” Medina Marquez told deputies, according to Coomes’ report and the bodycam footage.
In the video, he also appears to say he would have stabbed the deputy in the neck, a statement that makes the sheriff’s office’s emphasis on the vest even more understandable. When someone is close enough to knock a deputy down and repeatedly strike at his chest with a knife, inches can decide whether the outcome is a hospital visit or a funeral.
Charges Filed After Violent Attack
Medina Marquez was booked into the Marion County Jail after the ambush, Coomes reported.
He faces charges of attempted murder of a law enforcement officer, providing a false name to law enforcement, and resisting without violence. He is being held without bond.
The attempted murder charge reflects how seriously investigators are treating the encounter. According to the sheriff’s office account reported by Coomes, this was not a slow-developing confrontation or a situation where the deputy had time to create distance; it was an immediate attack as Fitch exited his patrol car.
That kind of encounter is one of the most dangerous realities of police work. A call that begins with a vague suspicious person report can turn violent before an officer has enough time to fully understand who they are dealing with, what the person is holding, or what their intent might be.
A Vest, Training And Seconds That Mattered
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office said the bulletproof vest saved Fitch’s life, and the bodycam footage makes clear why officials are saying that.
The vest did not prevent the attack, and it did not eliminate the danger, but it appears to have prevented the knife strikes from becoming fatal chest wounds. In this case, protective equipment bought the deputy time, and that time mattered.
There is also a broader point here that is easy to miss. The footage shows how quickly violence can erupt, but it also shows how quickly deputies had to make decisions once Medina Marquez was spotted again with a knife in his hand.
Commands were shouted, the knife was identified, distance was managed, and the suspect was taken into custody without further violence. Given the facts described by the sheriff’s office and the suspect’s alleged statements afterward, that outcome was far from guaranteed.
Coomes’ report and the bodycam footage together present a frightening but straightforward sequence: a deputy answered a call, was ambushed with a knife, survived because his vest absorbed the attack, and helped other deputies track the suspect moments later.
Medina Marquez is now facing serious charges, while Fitch’s survival is being credited to the piece of equipment that stopped the blows from reaching his chest. For all the discussion that often surrounds police gear, this incident is a clear example of why departments issue it and why deputies wear it even on calls that may initially sound routine.
Raised in a small Arizona town, Kevin grew up surrounded by rugged desert landscapes and a family of hunters. His background in competitive shooting and firearms training has made him an authority on self-defense and gun safety. A certified firearms instructor, Kevin teaches others how to properly handle and maintain their weapons, whether for hunting, home defense, or survival situations. His writing focuses on responsible gun ownership, marksmanship, and the role of firearms in personal preparedness.
