SWEETWATER, Florida — Four Sweetwater police officers were justified in the fatal shooting of Frank Diaz, the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office concluded after reviewing body-camera footage and investigative records, Focal News reported on October 24. NBC 6 South Florida reported on October 23 that the State Attorney's Office closed its investigation last week and determined the officers involved were justified in using deadly force, in a case investigated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Source: Focal News, Oct. 24, 2026
Officers responded to a domestic-violence call shortly before 6:30 p.m. on March 11 at a home on Southwest Seventh Terrace, according to the reports. Investigators' reports said Diaz was holding a knife to his pregnant wife's throat and had cut her hand and foot. The 911 caller had warned dispatchers that Diaz had a knife, NBC 6 reported, citing State Attorney's documents.
Source: NBC 6 South Florida, Oct. 23, 2026
Body-camera video shows officers approaching the backyard from two directions — two entered through a fence and encountered Diaz, while two others came through the house — and an officer can be heard ordering him to put the knife down, Focal News reported. In the footage described by NBC 6, officers repeatedly ordered Diaz to drop the knife and an officer yelled “Shoot” before officers opened fire. Three officers fired seven shots in total, prosecutors said, and Diaz died at the scene. The State Attorney's Office identified the three officers who discharged their weapons as Justin Statefeld, Orlando Villaverde and Francisco Garcia, NBC 6 reported.
Source: Focal News, Oct. 24, 2026
Investigators recovered a seven-inch kitchen knife near Diaz's body and an eight-inch bread knife on a table, according to the State Attorney's Office account reported by Focal News. After the shooting, officers began chest compressions, the reports said. Prosecutors based their decision on the video, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation and reports describing the attack. The finding closes the criminal investigation into the officers' use of force.