CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. -- A man who stabbed a police dog early Monday morning and then attacked Citrus County sheriff's deputies before he was shot to death remains unidentified this morning.
Mito, the sheriff's dog that was injured in the attack, will recover, deputies said.
The investigation into the bizarre 1 a.m. incident on U.S. 19 in Crystal River continued this morning, deputies said.
The man was jumping in and out of traffic, when deputies arrived. They confronted him, and the man brandished a large knife, deputies said.
Deputies released Mito, a German shepherd, to help apprehend the man, who then stabbed the approaching dog. The man then charged deputies with the knife.
Shots were fired, and the man was killed, deputies said. No one else was injured.
Mito was taken to the Dunnellon Animal Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery. The dog suffered a deep stab wound that came within a half-inch of his heart. Mito received 30 internal stitches during the surgery but is expected to make a full recovery, deputies said.
"As far as we know, he is recovering nicely," sheriff's spokeswoman Heather Yates said. "We know they have had him on his feet; he's walking around. I don't know if he's sedated or not."
Deputies said they had encountered the man earlier in the evening, but he did not appear to be a threat to himself or others. The man's name is being withheld until next of kin is notified.
U.S. 19 was closed for several hours after the shooting so deputies could investigate the incident. By 9 a.m., the highway was opened.
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