A Florida woman will be facing a grand jury after her family allegedly ambushed law enforcement officers, leaving one deputy dead. According to court records, Julie Sulpizio, 48, has been arrested on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and other crimes, per NBC News.
Julie Sulpizio, her husband Michael Sulpizio, and their two adult children are accused of having plotted to kill their neighbors, whom the mother claimed were pedophiles.
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Deputies first responded to the scene at 7:45 p.m. Friday, August 2, 2024, after receiving a call stating that a woman was assaulting her neighbors. During a news conference, Lake County Sheriff Peyton Grinnell said that the woman, later identified as Julie Sulpizio, accused the neighbors of "being sinners," and was saying, "I know what you did," in regards to her belief that they were involved in pedophilia.
Upon an officer arriving on the scene, the mother identified herself as "Helen under God's will," Grinnell said. According to one of the neighbors, she'd tried to get them to go into her house, but they didn't trust her. After her arrest, Julie Sulpizio revealed to investigators that she was attempting to lure them into her house so her husband could kill them. She said she was able to “visualize souls” and that it was her job to bring her husband “dark souls.”
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After the mother was arrested, deputies then went to conduct a welfare check at her home. Two dogs were found dead in the front yard and a window screen had been kicked out. Grinell explained that officers saw three people running inside the home, which they thought to have been a burglary or home invasion taking place.
After almost an hour, the deputies announced themselves, then entered the home after not getting through to anyone inside. The body camera of Lake County Master Deputy Bradley Link, 28, showed a man sitting with a rifle on the couch, seemingly wearing body armor. The man in the video, who is believed to be Michael Sulpizio, fired rounds, shooting Link in the back and striking Master Deputy Sheriff Harold Howell in the wrist.
Howell and other deputies retreated, and later tried to negotiate for the release of Link's body. However, a woman in the home was captured on the body camera footage racking her gun and yelling, "My king will kill all of you," according to Grinnell.
At around 9:30 p.m., a tactical unit entered the home, but was met with gunfire. Deputy First Class Stefano Gargano, using a ballistics shield, was struck with multiple high-caliber rounds through a wall. Other deputies attempted to remove the officer and were "actively engaged by suspects."
Grinnell went on to explain that at 11:02 p.m., two gunshots were heard back-to-back, and then a third one was fired minutes later. Authorities found Michael Sulpizio and the two daughters, Savannah Sulpizio, 23, and Cheyenne Sulpizio, 22, dead on the couch. It appeared that they had taken their own lives. Link was airlifted to a hospital and later pronounced dead. Gargano is stable and Howell is expected to make a full recovery.
Inside the family's home, over 20 high-caliber rifles, shotguns, and pistols were found staged around the living room, Grinnell said. Stockpiles of ammunition, body armor, gas masks, ready-to-eat meals, ghillie (camouflage) suits, anti-government propaganda, and media promoting conspiracy theories were also found.
"This was nothing short of an ambush," Florida's Fifth Judicial Circuit state attorney Bill Gladson said. "The evidence will show that." The case must go before a grand jury within 21 days, Gladson added. Julie Sulpizio's arraignment is currently scheduled for September 3, 2024.
