# Officer Down: Sergeant Christopher Reyka - [Broward County, Florida]



## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

08/10/2007
*South Fla. deputy fatally shot*

*Officer Down: Sergeant Christopher Reyka* - [Broward County, Florida]

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ODMP

Biographical Info*
*Age: *51

*Cause of Death:* Gunfire
*
Additional Information:* Sergeant Reyka had served with the agency for 18 years. He is survived by his wife and four children.

*Incident Details*: Sergeant Reyka was shot and killed while checking on two suspicious vehicles in a convenience store parking lot at approximately 1:20 am. He had parked next to the two vehicles and began checking their license plates.

As he exited his patrol car an occupant of one of the vehicles also exited the car and opened fire, striking Sergeant Reyka several times.

Customers of the store immediately called 911 to report the shooting. Sergeant Reyka was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his wounds a short time later.

The suspect fled the scene and remains at large.

*End of Watch: *Friday, August 10, 2007

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**Fla. deputy fatally shot checking suspicious license plate*

*Second Broward County off shot in 5 days.* 
By Sallie James, Andrew Tran, Dianna Cahn
Sun-Sentinel
POMPANO BEACH, Fla. - A Broward County sheriff's deputy was shot and killed early Friday in Pompano Beach, the second shooting of a Broward deputy this week.
The deputy was identified as Chris Reyka, 51, of Wellington. Early reports said that he had been shot in the head.
The shooting happened near a Walgreen drug store at 960 S. Pompano Parkway as Reyka was checking out the license plates of suspicious cars in the parking lot at about 1 a.m., said Sheriff's Office spokesman Mike Jachles.
"At this point, we believe the deputy exited his vehicle and around the same time one subject exited his vehicle and opened fire on the deputy, firing multiple shots," Jachles said.
The Sheriff's Office set up a large command post in the area as deputies searched for the killer. Just after the shooting, police concentrated their search along Interstate 95 and in the neighborhood surrounding the scene.
During the morning rush hour, BSO patrol cars were on every entrance ramp along I-95 with lights flashing as they searched for the suspect's car. Helicopters, deputies, police officers and canine patrols were mobilized from Palm Beach County south into Broward.
A $20,000 reward was offered.
"There is a massive manhunt for this cop killer," Jachles said.
Authorities were looking for a white, full-sized American-made passenger vehicle with tinted windows and stolen Florida tag F168UJ, Jachles said. The car, which has two unknown occupants, was believed to have been manufactured within the last 10 years and was not new, he said.
Reyka, the father of four children, joined the Pompano Beach police department in 1989 before it merged into the Sheriff's Office 10 years later.
Delores Barbare, a cashier at the nearby Bagel Snack Restaurant and Deli, said that Reyka used to come into her shop on occasion.
"It's absolutely terrible," she said. "That cop used to come in here. It's scary. It really is."
Friday's shooting came just days after another deputy, Maury Hernandez, was shot in the head and injured Monday after a traffic stop. David Maldonado has been charged in that shooting.
Reyka was taken to North Broward Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Sheriff Ken Jenne visited the hospital early Friday and said this week has been a very challenging one for his agency. Numerous deputies were at the hospital, where grief counselors were available to help.
Deputy Pepper Shaw, who has been on the force 30 years, was Reyka's training officer when he worked at the Pompano Beach police department. She said he quickly stood out among his fellow officers. Despite making detective and then being promoted to supervisor, Reyka always preferred patrolling in his car, she said.
"He had good instincts on the street. He was an excellent officer, very cautious," Shaw said.
Shaw described her fellow deputies as "devastated" by the shootings this week.
"It's hard to comprehend," she said. "Two officers shot in a week. It's really taking a toll on us."
Reyka had been named employee of the month in April for the Sheriff's Office district covering Pompano Beach. He won the award for finding a car stolen from Lighthouse Point and for spotting a suspicious vehicle whose occupants had just committed a burglary and grand theft, said Sheriff's Office spokesman Elliot Cohen.
"He was running tags on cars he thought were suspicious," Cohen said. "Today, it got him killed."
Reyka, a former Marine, had a wife, Kim; a 21-year-old daughter at college; a son, 20, who is in the Marines; a daughter, 15; and a son, 13.
Neighbors in the gated Isles community where he lived said he was a central figure in the neighborhood, where he was involved in the Cub and Boy Scouts and St. Therese de Liseux Catholic Church, near his home.
"Any kid would've been proud to have him as a dad. He was just so phenomenal," said Elizabeth Krupa, who moved into the neighborhood in 1998, about the same time as the Reykas.
Sharon Fritz of Loxahatchee, whose sister is married to Ryka's brother, described the deputy as easy-going and friendly to everybody.
"Unfortunately, he died doing what he loved best," Fritz said.
Van Roberts, 40, who lives in a condominium across the street from Walgreens, said he was on his couch watching television Friday morning when he heard several shots.
"I hear all these gunshots, it wasn't just one," said Roberts, a commercial real estate appraiser. "It was mulitple, it was just constant. With the number of gunsots I heard, it was almost like a gunfight."
The suspects were last seen northbound on South Pompano Park Road, Jachles said.
Dozens of highways, roads and ramps were shut down for a while as authorities searched for the gunman. The Florida Highway Patrol said traffic was moving normally on the I-95 and other roads.
The stolen tag was registered to Terry's Plumbing in Oakland Park. A secretary who answered the phone at the business said they had just found out about the theft and had no comment.
Berthe Blanchard, 78, who lives near the shooting scene, said she heard a a lot of noise Friday morning, but didn't know what had happened until her daughter called.


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## PBC FL Cop (Oct 22, 2003)

The suspects are still at large, so be safe out there!!!


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

Thousands Mourn Slain Florida Deputy














AP Photo/Emily Michot

Officers gather for the funeral services of Sgt. Chris Reyka, who was killed in the line of duty August 10.



SUNRISE, Fla. -- 
Funeral services were held Wednesday for Broward Sheriff's Office Sgt. Chris Reyka, who was killed in the line of duty last week. An estimated 8,000 people filled the BankAtlantic Center for the memorial service. Most of them were law enforcement officers from various departments around the state, Local 10's Roger Lohse reported. 
Reyka's son, Sean, a Marine like his father, led the pallbearers who walked the flag draped coffin from the hearse into the building where Sheriff Ken Jenne delivered the eulogy. 
"One of the best, one of the brightest of all our protectors are gone," said Jenne. 
Jenne described the 51-year-old lawman as a dedicated deputy whose passion for his job was surpassed only by the love for his family. Reyka's wife, Kim, and the couple's four children comforted each other in the front row during the memorial and thanked mourners for their support. 
Kim Reyka thanked the crowd for helping her family cope with the loss of her husband. 
"Chris touched many people's lives in many special ways and we are all broken. His example of love and respect, his sense of humor, and his sense of honor will always be remembered," she said. 
Reyka was killed last Friday in the parking lot of a Walgreens on Powerline Road in Pompano Beach. Investigators said he was checking on a car with stolen plates when the passenger in the car ambushed him. Detectives are still looking for the killer who they believe left the scene in a white four-door sedan. 
But it was Reyka's life that was remembered Wednesday, Lohse reported. A DVD was played during the service that documented his childhood, service in the Marines and his law enforcement career. But it mainly captured Reyka's dedication to his family. 
Sean Reyka described his father as a loving father and mentor. 
"There are few men like him in this world and I can only say that one day I hope I will be able to fill his shoes," he said. 
The service lasted about 90 minutes. Reyka was buried at South Florida National Veteran's Cemetery in Lake Worth. 
<HL2>'He Loved To Be A Cop' </HL2>
Daughter Ashley Reyka, in speaking with the media Tuesday for the first time since her father's death, said the 18-year BSO veteran died doing what he loved. 
"He loved to be a cop," she said. "Even my friends would say, you know, they always heard him say he liked to work the night shift because it's where all the action was." 
Reyka's oldest daughter maintained her composure as she described the last time his children saw their father before he went to work Thursday night. 
"We always walked to the front door and gave him a kiss, and he'd get in his cruiser with his coffee and he'd leave," she said. 
When asked what her father's final words were, she said, "I love you and I'll see you in the morning." 
Ashley Reyka, her grandfather and uncle joined the hundreds of BSO deputies who paid their respects at his visitation Tuesday at the Forest Lawn North Funeral Home in Pompano Beach. The line of deputies waiting to get inside the funeral home stretched the length of the building. 
Inside, Reyka's body lay in a closed casket, draped in an American flag and surrounded by roses. 
Earlier in the day, strangers and law enforcement personnel from other agencies gathered outside a makeshift memorial of flowers, cards and stuffed animals in the Walgreens parking lot near the place where Reyka was mortally wounded. 
Diane Harvey, who lives just a few blocks away from where Reyka was killed, said his death symbolizes complete disregard for the law and life. 
"Just the fact that he was out there protecting us and for this to happen, it's unthinkable," Harvey told Local 10's Roger Lohse. 











AP Photo/Allen Eyestone

Broward County Sheriff Ken Jenne shakes hands with Kim Reyka after the burial of her husband, Broward County Sheriff's Deputy Chris Reyka.

*Story From: **local10.com*


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