9 Investigators confirmed that a man involved in a standoff with Orange County deputies on Sunday ran up to a sign on 417 the next day.
Law enforcement closed both sides of the highway at Moss Park Road for about five hours Monday as Vincent Cody Tetro sat on a sign on the 417 overpass.
“We’re like, ‘What? It can’t be the same person,'” Nicole Bazinet said. “(Law enforcement) would never show that much urgency toward a situation and not solve it. I just couldn’t believe it.
Bazinet talked about how she and others in the Isle of Pines neighborhood reacted when they learned the same man was involved in both cases.
On Sunday, Orange County deputies surrounded Tetro’s rental home on Lake Mary Jane Boulevard.
Court documents obtained by Channel 9 said Tetro was intentionally starting fires in the house.
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When deputies arrived, he barricaded himself with a butcher knife and set more fires in front of deputies — including setting them on the hardwood floors. The smoke became so strong, documents say, that deputies had to back away from the home. Deputies remained outside trying to negotiate with Tetro while he continued to yell at them through the window.
It’s not clear what happened next, but sometime on Oct. 29, Tetro fled the home and deputies, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said.
“Why was he allowed to wander around the neighborhood, which he clearly did? Where did he go? And he didn’t come home. There are women and children walking their dogs at night. People are driving around in golf carts,” Fred Brassack said.
Hours later, Monday afternoon, Tetro climbed to the top of Sign 417. The road was closed for hours while deputies worked to get him down.
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Channel 9 found that this isn’t the only time this month that law enforcement has encountered a situation like this with him.
On October 18, Tetro rose to the top of a Home Depot store in Orange County. Deputies were eventually able to speak with him and place him in a mental health facility under the Baker Act for up to 72 hours.
On Oct. 25, another incident occurred in Osceola County where he was taken into custody under the Baker Act again, court documents said.
The Sheriff’s Office claims that in all of the incidents in Orange County, Tetro “posed no danger to the public.” In the incident on October 29, deputies said Tetreault was confined to a home and no one else was inside.
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“I don’t understand how this man was so dangerous and with such unpredictable mental capacity. Why did they let him escape?” Bazinet said.
“How did he escape with so much law enforcement surrounding the house to include a SWAT team?” Brassac said.
The Sheriff’s Office declined to answer further questions, saying this is an open and active investigation. Tetro is at an undisclosed medical facility at this time but will be transported to prison, where he faces a felony arson charge, the Orange County Jail said.
The State Attorney’s Office stated in court documents that Tetro not only poses a danger to himself, but to others.
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