Gainesville man arrested for reaching for gun while being detained for involuntary mental health treatment; family said he threatened to “shoot up” Ignite Life Center

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Victor Luis Bruce, 21, was arrested for allegedly reaching for a gun in his waistband while officers were attempting to detain him for involuntary mental health treatment; his family reportedly said he had threatened to “shoot up” Ignite Life Center.

At about 8:35 p.m. on April 25, Gainesville Police Department officers responded to Bruce’s apartment at Chelsea Apartments (2510 NE 9th Street) after family members reported that Bruce had “become increasingly ‘dark,’ irritable, and confrontational.” They said Bruce said, “I’m going to shoot up the church,” referring to Ignite Life Center (404 NW 14th Avenue), and said he would not be happy until everyone at the church was dead. Knowing that Bruce owned several firearms, family members feared he intended to act on the threats and contacted law enforcement.

Officers contacted Bruce outside his apartment, and he reportedly denied making any statements about a mass shooting. When three officers tried to detain him to place him under a Baker Act, Bruce allegedly physically resisted and reached for a loaded Glock 43X handgun that was concealed in his waistband. An officer removed the gun before Bruce could draw it from his waistband and safely detained him, but the intended victim believed that violence was imminent and that he would be forced to use his own firearm if Bruce drew the gun.

After Bruce was detained, officers reportedly located two revolvers, a Mini Draco, two shotguns, a handgun, an AR-15-style rifle, a bulletproof vest, and over 700 rounds of ammunition in his apartment.

Bruce, who works as a pet groomer and has no criminal history, has been charged with aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer. After he was admitted to a mental hospital under the Baker Act and booked into the jail a few days later, Judge Gloria Walker ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s office to hold him without bail until trial.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.