PORT RICHEY, Fla. — When Port Richey Mayor Dale Massad was arrested after firing shots at deputies who were trying to serve a warrant at his home Thursday morning, it was far from the first time the mayor had been in trouble.
ABC Action News I-Team Investigator Adam Walser started looking into him last year, after learning police went to his home more than four-dozen times in the past three years.
RELATED:
Port Richey Mayor arrested after shots fired at SWAT attempting to serve warrant at his home
Police respond to calls ranging from domestic violence to stolen guns at local mayor's home
Those crimes involved drugs, guns and domestic violence.
Now, we're learning that Massad is also suspected of practicing medicine without a license.
Pasco County Sheriff’s Deputies went to the home shortly before 5:00 a.m. to serve a warrant for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
“He shot at our members, he's lucky he's not dead,” said Sheriff Chris Nocco.
FDLE was investigating Massad for practicing medicine without a license. They say he gave people stitches and injections in his home.
Massad gave up his medical license in 1992, after a three-year-old girl he was treating died as a result of a botched birthmark removal procedure.
Sheriff Nocco says when they went to serve the warrant, they were prepared for the worst.
“The suspect had multiple weapons in the house,” Nocco said.
The I-Team first questioned the mayor about his guns last July.
“I shot one of my smoke detectors, because I couldn't get up there to get it and it wouldn't go off and it was 3 a.m.,” Massad said.
In another incident, Massad, who said he'd been “partying all night”, stood on a stool with a flashlight and a loaded gun, looking for intruders in his ceiling.
We asked him about that police report.
“He has, he actually has guns all over the house,” said a witness, questioned about a report of stolen guns at the Mayor’s house in recordings obtained by the I-Team.
“There's just too much bull ** that goes on at his house. There's way too much going on there,” said another witness.
“Criminals are in and out of there. Shady people are in and out of there,” said a police officer questioning the witness.
Massad admitted there were often criminals in his home when we interviewed him a second time last August.
That was days after he was released from jail following a charge for domestic battery, which involved a fight with his girlfriend.
That charge was eventually dropped.
“The main thing I learned from the jail, is I don't want to go back,” Massad said.
“Angels were looking over us this morning and thankfully, our deputies are going to go home to their families,” said Nocco.
If you have a story you’d like the I-Team to investigate, contact us at adam@abcactionnews.com
