Deputies: Off-duty DeLand police officer fatally shot uncle

A off-duty DeLand police officer fatally shot his uncle during a domestic incident, a spokesman with the Volusia County Sheriff's Office says.  The reported family squabble happened on Friday night and ended in the shooting death of a 68-year-old man.

"The shooter, a DeLand police officer who was off-duty at the time, said he shot his uncle, because he was fighting and choking the officer's mother during an argument," said Gary Davidson with the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.  Detectives are investigating the death, Davidson added.

Deputies were dispatched to a home on Tradewinds Drive in Deltona after the Sheriff's Office received a 911 call around 6:30 p.m.  When deputies arrived, the shooting victim was already dead.  The victim and the off-duty police officer were not immediately identified. 

"The shooter initially told the Sheriff's Office that he retrieved a gun and fired, because his uncle was choking his mother during a heated argument and he was unable to break it up. The argument took place in the living room," Davidson said.

No one else was at the home at the time of the shooting. The shooter and his mother were being interviewed at the scene.