- Richard Myron Ham handled two metal bars and burned debris, including live ammunition, on US 98 in Sebring, Florida, on Tuesday
- Ham allegedly covered his girlfriend Lakenya Phillip's young son with a blanket and pushed him into the fire; the boy miraculously escaped without injury
- When Ham did not follow the officers' orders, he was first tasered, but when that did not yield results, he was shot with a firearm.
A 39-year-old convicted felon was shot dead by police after the man attacked a Florida police officer with a metal bar and burned his girlfriend's nine-year-old son because he believed the boy was “possessed by a demon.”
Richard Myron Ham handled two metal rods and burning debris, including live ammunition, on the side of the road on US 98 in Sebring around 4 p.m. Tuesday.
When deputies from the Highlands County Sheriff's Department and Highlands County Fire-Rescue arrived on scene, witnesses told police that Ham had covered his girlfriend Lakenya Phillips, 30, young son, with a blanket before pushing him into the burning fire.
Just before the bizarre ordeal, the couple had set fire to the boy's belongings. Miraculously, the child survived and escaped without injury. He is currently in DCF custody.
When Ham refused to follow the deputy's orders, he was tased. When the Taser did not work, Ham struck one of the deputies in the head with the metal bar allegedly handed to him by Phillips, before Ham was fatally shot.
Richard Myron Ham wielded two metal bars and burned his girlfriend's son's belongings before pushing his girlfriend's son into the burning flames and claiming the boy was 'possessed by a demon' before being fatally shot
Officers arrived at Bay Blossom Drive and US 98 in Sebring around 4pm on Tuesday when reports of the bizarre demonic act emerged
Ham's girlfriend Lakenya Phillips, 30, was also involved in the crime and was taken into custody at the scene
While emergency services attempted to render aid to Ham as his girlfriend had reportedly acted violently towards police and was taken into custody.
Ham was transported to hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The officer, whose name was not released, was taken to another hospital where he was treated and released.
Police said the child told him that during his trip to Florida, he had not bathed or brushed his teeth in at least 10 days and had not been fed for at least 24 hours.
He said both Ham and Phillips regularly used drugs and that Ham had previously threatened him with a large knife, claiming he had used that knife to kill someone.
Investigators are working with law enforcement agencies in several states to follow up on this statement, officials said.
On December 6, Phillips and the child were listed as missing and endangered outside Wichita, Kansas. It also remains unclear why the mother and son traveled from Kansas to Sebring, Florida.
Officers found multiple firearms and drugs in the vehicle Ham and Phillips used.
“The deputies involved in the incident have sixteen and eight years of service and are both trained in crisis intervention and de-escalation techniques,” the department said. press release.
“They have been placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated by the 10th Judicial Circuit's Officer Involved Deadly Incident Task Force.”