A newly released report has shed light on the fatal shooting at a homeless camp over an attack by dogs.
Detectives with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded to an active homicide investigation involving 43-year-old Matthew Lee Pasco of Leesburg in the wooded area northeast of the Florida Health Lake County WIC Office, 1904 Griffin Rd., Leesburg, on Friday, according to an affidavit of probable cause out of Lake County.
Before their arrival, dispatch got a call about a woman who had been bitten by multiple dogs. The caller was headed toward the road to flag down EMS when he heard loud screaming and a gunshot. He told dispatch that Pasco, the husband of the bite victim, shot the dog owner, the affidavit said.
Deputies on scene confirmed Pasco was indeed the shooter and established a perimeter to find him. All attempts, including aviation, drones and K-9 units, were unsuccessful at the time, the affidavit said.
Detectives later spoke with a female witness who saw Pasco shoot the dog owner. She had been inside Pasco’s tent, where she spent the previous night, when she awoke to the sound of Pasco’s wife being attacked by dogs. Pasco stepped out of the tent to investigate and returned a short time later to retrieve a black pistol with an attached “laser,” stating he was going to kill the dogs, the affidavit said.
Pasco then ran toward the area where the dogs and their owner were located, the affidavit said. The witness followed behind him until all parties converged on a trail. An argument broke out between Pasco and the dog owner, during which the latter raised his arms in protest to harming the dogs, but made no threatening statements or gestures. He simply stated, “You’re not going to shoot the dogs.”
Pasco responded, “You think I won’t shoot you, too?” He proceeded to point the pistol at the dog owner, fire into his chest and flee on foot in an unknown direction. Another witness saw him run back to his tent and leave the area on a gray bicycle five minutes later, the affidavit said.
The dog owner was treated on scene by EMS and transported to Leesburg Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at around 8:30 a.m., the affidavit said.
Additionally, Pasco’s wife had been carried out of the woods with bleeding wounds before the shooting. She only heard a “pop” and the sound of the dog owner hitting the floor. She denied Pasco being present, the affidavit said.
Pasco was ultimately arrested on a warrant charging him with murder on Sunday afternoon in Leesburg. He was booked at Lake County Jail and is currently being held without bond.
His prior arrests include theft from Walmart in Nov. 2023, trespassing in an abandoned house in March 2023 and being caught in a homeless encampment in Dec. 2022.