Gov. DeSantis Suspends Port Richey Mayor Following Arrest

PORT RICHEY, FL -- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has issued an executive order suspending Dale Massad as mayor of Port Richey in the wake of Massad's arrest on five counts of premeditated attempted murder and practicing medicine without a license.

In a statement issued Friday, DeSantis said, "It's in the interest of the residents of the City of Port Richey and citizens of the state of Florida that Dale Glen Massad be immediately suspended from public office.

Massad, 68, was arrested Thursday, Feb. 21, after being accused of firing a gun at a Pasco County Sheriff's Office SWAT Team. The SWAT team had gone to his home to serve a warrant on charges that Massad was practicing medicine without a license.

See related story: Port Richey Mayor Arrested After Shooting At SWAT Team: Sheriff

Massad was arraigned in court on Friday afternoon. Massad's attorney Marc Salton argued for bail but prosecutors contended that he represented a flight risk after he reportedly made a statement about leaving the country. Circuit Court Judge Declan Mansfield ordered him held at the Land O' Lakes Detention Center without bond.

The sheriff's office was attempting to serve a warrant on Massad Thursday at 4:40 a.m. at the request of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Acting on a tip that Massad was practicing medicine without a license, the FDLE began a four-month-long undercover operation in which they used an informant who pretended to have a medical problem.

Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco said he assembled a SWAT Team to serve the warrant because he was aware that Massad kept guns in his home and had stated after his arrest last June on domestic battery charges that he wasn't going back to jail.

When the SWAT Team announced itself multiple times with no response from Massad, the team broke into his home. Team members said that's when they heard the sound of a gun being fired. They took cover behind a SWAT vehicle and shined a spotlight on Massad's home. They said they could see Massad on the second floor of the home holding a cell phone in one hand and a gun in the other.

Massad then surrendered himself, claiming he didn't realize it was the sheriff outside his home and thought his life was in danger.

A former medical doctor, Massad relinquished his license in 1992 after a 3-year-old girl he was treating died. Although he no longer had a license, the FDLE's investigation indicated that he was performing medical procedures and employing the use of medications he ordered over the Internet. The FDLE charged him with four counts of practicing medicine without a license and two counts of unlawful use of a two-way communication device.

Massad first became involved in Port Richey politics in 2000 when he was appointed to fill a vacancy on the city council. He continued serving on the city council off and on until 2015 when he was elected mayor to fill the seat vacated by former Mayor Eloise Taylor.

Following DeSantis' suspension of Massad as mayor, Massad officially resigned from office. Vice Mayor Terrence Rowe will serve as mayor of the city until further notice. The next city council meeting is on Feb. 26.

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