Patrick Pegues and WOFL-Fox 35 have parted ways following the reporter’s arrest Monday night for allegedly firing a gun while walking a dog in Orlando.
According to the incident report, witnesses observed the suspect walking a dog along East Michigan Street. Witnesses told deputies they saw another dog in a yard outside a fence. They say the dog did not seem aggressive. Moments later, witnesses heard a gunshot. Deputies confronted Pegues and found a gun on him. According to the report, Pegues indicated he was defending himself. Deputies did find damage to a car in the area where witnesses say they heard the gunshot. No injuries were reported. Pegues is charged with unlawful discharge of a firearm and discharging a destructive device with property damage. Pegues is no longer employed with FOX 35.
The Orlando Sentinel reported that a Beretta 9mm semi-automatic gun was found on Pegues’ right hip. Pegues said he had a concealed weapons permit.
Initially, WOFL said Pegues had been suspended, but later reported that he was no longer with the station. This was not Pegues’ first run-in with police during his time at WOFL.
Pegues got into a scuffle with a Seminole County deputy in April while covering a story. Watch the video of that incident here. Pegues was not arrested.
He was arrested in October 2007 on charges of disorderly conduct and resisting an officer without violence while on assignment to cover an accident on Lake Margaret Road.
His bio page has been removed from the MyFoxOrlando.com website, but you can see a cached version here.