TAMPA, Fla. — A Florida man was shot and killed Saturday by his cousin after police said he wanted to test to see if a bulletproof vest that he owned still worked, authorities said.
Joaquin Mendez, 23, "wondered out loud whether (the bulletproof vest) still worked" around 10 p.m. Saturday at a home in the Tampa area. His cousin, Alexandro Garibaldi, 24, pulled out a gun and said, "Let"s see," WFLA reported.
Mendez sat in a chair and put on the vest, and Garibaldi shot him in the chest, according to police.
Police said Mendez was found outside the house with a gunshot wound to the chest. Garibaldi told police that he "found his wounded cousin after hearing a gunshot," but a witness said Garibaldi shot Mendez inside the house.
Garibaldi was arrested and held without bond Sunday on a manslaughter charge.
Read more at WFLA.