A man in Polk County was shot and killed by deputies on Monday after they say he was armed with garden shears and acting erratically after surviving an apparent gator attack. 

Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies began searching for Timothy Schultz, 42, just before 6 a.m. after a convenience store clerk reported he was acting "bizarre."

Deputies spend about 40 minutes looking for the man, WFLA says. 

Schultz then began swimming in an alligator-infested lake, nearby residents told officials. 

A witness tried to throw Schultz a life preserver and another witness said Schultz growled at them when they tried to help, PCSO said. 

Witnesses told deputies an alligator was spotted close to him as he swam across the lake.

Schultz emerged from the lake with an apparent alligator bite and began walking between houses while holding a pair of garden shears. 

PCSO said he then used a brick to attempt to break into a resident’s truck.

A witness told detectives they saw the suspect run at deputies with the shears. He was tased twice, but it didn't stop him. 

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said he climbed into the passenger side of a PCSO patrol vehicle, trying to get a deputy’s rifle.

That’s when two deputies, identified as a trainee and his trainer, opened fire on the suspect, killing him. 

Judd said Schultz had a lengthy criminal history that included several arrests for methamphetamine. 

This is a developing story and will be updated

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