Woman shot, killed by ex-husband in Deltona home before he fatally shot self after crashing, deputies say

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – A woman was shot and killed in Deltona by her ex-husband, who led law enforcement on a chase early Monday into Flagler County before fatally shooting himself, according to the Volusia Sheriff’s Office.

Volusia deputies responded around 2:23 a.m. to a home in the 3200 block of Parma Drive. The victim — 38-year-old Ashley Vaia — was found dead in the home by her child shortly before deputies arrived, according to a news release.

[RELATED: How to find help for domestic violence survivors in Volusia County and throughout Central Florida]

Deputies identified the suspect as the woman’s ex-husband, 33-year-old Samuel Vaia, who fled the area in a white SUV and sped north on Interstate 95 out of Volusia County, the sheriff’s office stated.

“With multiple law enforcement agencies responding to the fleeing vehicle, stop sticks successfully deployed, and Air One overhead, the suspect crashed and rolled over around 3:21 a.m. in the area of Palm Harbor Parkway and Hammock Dunes Parkway in Palm Coast‚" the sheriff’s office said.

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Law enforcement activity near Hammock Dunes Parkway and Palm Harbor Parkway shut down the toll bridge around 4:27 a.m., but it was later reopened.

Sheriff’s officials said Samuel Vaia, who was armed and wearing body armor, was taken out of the vehicle around 5:15 a.m. and that he had shot himself. He was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

“SWAT team gets out there, they make announcements, drones are flying. They decide to try to break into the wind shield of the car where they then observe the suspect wound has a self inflicted gunshot wound to the head,” Sheriff Mike Chitwood said.

Deputies said Samuel Vaia had been arrested on March 23 on a battery charge after the victim told law enforcement he had grabbed her and pushed her into a bathroom. He later bonded out on March 24.

“A domestic violence injunction is just this, a protection order is just this: a piece of paper. It’s never going to keep any woman safe when someone is hell bent to kill you and clearly this guy was hell bent on killing her,” Chitwood said.

If you need help getting out of an abusive situation, or getting someone you care about out of an abusive situation, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233, or text “START” to 88788.

This is a developing story and will be updated with more information as we receive it.