A father and adult son were shot inside their East Arlington home by a neighbor Thursday, prompting a SWAT situation, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. The suspect has since been taken into custody, JSO says.
Neighbors say Stephen Holzbacher, 33, was taken into custody. He is expected to make his first court appearance on Friday at 1 p.m.
JSO was called to a residence at 12200 Country Cove Ct. at around 3 p.m. Thursday after they say the neighbor walked into the residents' garage area and shot one victim in the chest and another in the leg.
"He pointed the gun at my son and started shooting at him," said victim Robert Bibeau, who says the suspect got in through his open garage door. "I heard 'pop!' I thought I dropped something. I turn around, he's standing there."
Both Bibeau and his son Abraham were rushed to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, JSO says. The father and son have since been discharged from the hospital in good condition.
The suspect soon went into the home and would not come out, prompting JSO to call SWAT to the scene.
“They started to say that he needed to come out with his hands up and a whole bunch of other stuff and we saw people come out that were shot," said witness Viviana Morales. "I literally watched them walk down the concrete and it was really scary because it was just me, my grandmother, and my little sister. And my little sister is not even three yet.”
JSO Lt. Steve Mullen says deputies communicated with the suspect by phone while he was inside the residence, and that the suspect said things that were "unusual," leading officers to believe he may have been impaired or under the influence.
"It's an eye-opener. It's such a shocker because this is something he'd never do. He's always been so nice," said Morales.
After two hours, the suspect finally left the home and was taken into custody. Deputies say he pointed a gun at another neighbor but did not shoot.
Homes in the immediate area were evacuated, but residents are now able to return after JSO said there is no threat to the neighborhood.
Investigators are working to determine the motive behind the shooting. Bibeu said he's reported the neighbor to police months ago for escalating problems.
"Being threatened he'd kill me, police did zero -- nothing," Bibeau said.
Abraham Bibeau said he's lucky that the first shot, aimed at his head, failed to go off.
"I looked at him, the gun was pointing at my head. Then he pulled the trigger -- it didn't go off," Abraham said. It was a lucky shot for me. It didn't work."
JSO said no one else was injured inside the victims' home at the time of the shooting.
The suspect was booked into the Duval County jail Thursday night and faces charges of aggravated battery and aggravated assault.
