CCSO: Ave Maria man, 22, dies after deputies respond to suspicious incident

A 22-year-old man died in Ave Maria after deputies responded to a report of a suspicious incident in the community Monday.

Deputies were called to the Ave Maria Oratory around 7 a.m. to a report of a suspicious person, the Collier County Sheriff's Office said on its Facebook page.

Witnesses told deputies that Luke Stephen Scheck, of the 4000 block of Ogden Street, "was running through the community acting erratic," according to the social media post.

Scheck had been lying in the road outside The Bean restaurant in the 5000 block of Annunciation Circle and had tried to jump in front of a car, one witness told deputies.

"Another witness said Scheck, a longtime friend, was acting uncharacteristically violent and had punched him in the face," the Sheriff's Office said.

When deputies tried to make contact with Scheck, he fled "and jumped over several residential fences," according to the Sheriff's Office post.

When a deputy ordered Scheck to stop, he charged at the deputy, who then used pepper spray "in an attempt to bring Scheck under control," the post states.

"Scheck ran from the deputy, jumped over a 6-foot-high fence and headed toward a nearby lake," the Sheriff's Office said in its post.

Deputies requested paramedics, fire rescue and Sheriff's Office aviation units.

Scheck continued to act "extremely erratic," deputies said, and walked into the water, "dunking his head in and out of the water," according to the Sheriff's Office.

Deputies tried to communicate with Scheck from land, but after a short time saw that Scheck appeared to be in distress, the post states.

Deputies pulled Scheck out of the water and onto land, where they began cardiopulmonary resuscitation until paramedics arrived and took over.

Scheck was taken to NCH Healthcare Northeast, where he was later pronounced dead.

"Throughout the incident Scheck was non-responsive as deputies attempted to communicate with him utilizing Crisis Intervention Training techniques in an attempt to de-escalate the situation and to bring Scheck into protective custody," the Sheriff's Office said in its post. "At no time while the incident was active did deputies make physical contact with him."

The Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigation Division is conducting a death investigation, which will include a toxicology report, and the agency's Professional Responsibility Bureau is conducting an administrative investigation to ensure that agency policies and procedures were followed, the Sheriff's Office said.