Man accused of shooting at officer through his door

Police arrested a Clermont man Tuesday after he shot through his front door at a police officer, then refused to come outside for nearly two hours, reports say.

Robert Sever, 71, faces a charge of attempted homicide of a law enforcement officer, according to an arrest report. No officers were injured during the incident.

Clermont police went to his home on Burley Avenue about 10:30 p.m. to check on him after a friend reported having an alarming phone conversation with Sever, the arrest report states. The friend told police he was acting abnormally hostile and described a dream he had about killing his friend.

Sever has a history of violent contacts with police and the public, and owns multiple guns, police said, so officers decided to drive by his house. They set up a perimeter and an officer knocked on the front door and identified himself as Clermont police, the report states. The officer heard a voice inside, followed by a gunshot.

Police said the bullet went through the front door, just missing the officer. A hostage negotiator and Lake County sheriff’s deputies were then called for backup.

Dispatchers also got a call from a man who said he served in the Vietnam War with Sever. That man said Sever sent him a text message saying he was being shot at and to contact the federal government. Police later saw Sever get on the floor of a screened-in patio and heard him say he had a surprise for everyone. About 25 minutes later, he surrendered unarmed with his hands above his head, the report states.

A bomb squad searched his home as a precaution and officers confiscated his guns. Police said that during an interview, Sever admitted shooting at the officer because he thought he was a “dirty cop.”

Sever is being held in the Lake County Jail without bail.