BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. — A man is dead following an officer-involved shooting at the Boynton Beach Intracoastal Park & Clubhouse Saturday morning. The park was closed for the majority of the day as the Boynton Beach Police Department (BBPD) conducted an investigation.
The incident occurred after police responded to a domestic dispute at the 600 block of NE 20th Ln at around 10:45 a.m. when authorities say a father called 9-1-1 to report his son, who was struggling with a mental health condition, possibly under the influence of drugs, and armed with a knife.
Police later identified the man as 31-year-old Edenson Jules of Boynton Beach.
According BBPD, officers located the Jules at Intracoastal Park reportedly holding a machete. Officers tried to de-escalate the situation, giving verbal commands for the man to drop the machete. Ignoring the officers’ commands, Jules shouted “Shoot, why you don’t want to shoot?” and proceeded to charge at the officers with the machete.
“During the encounter, they had to discharge their firearm,” Boynton Beach Police Chief Joe DeGiulio said. “Subsequently, after they immediately started life-saving measures.”
Jules was transported to a nearby hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
The officers involved were Sunil Surajbally, Brittany Jones, Amanda Eichorst and Thomas Winkles. All involved officers were unharmed.
As part of standard protocol, the officers involved in the shooting have been placed on non-disciplinary administrative leave until the investigation is completed.