MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Police are on the hunt for robbers who targeted a man near a CVS in Miami Beach. The victim is now speaking out in hopes that the community will help police find the people responsible.
Miami Beach Police said Francisco Cuesta had finished making a purchase at his local CVS in the area of Third Street and Collins Avenue on Sept. 27, when a white Dodge Charger pulled up to him.
“I came walking from Collins Avenue, and then the middle of the alley,” Cuesta said. “The lady asked me for the phone, and then I lend the phone. Then two guys came from the car and said, ‘Gimme the phone, gimme the phone!'”
After giving up his cellphone, Cuesta said two other crooks, wearing masks and dark clothing, exited the car and took his CVS bag containing hair dye and a protein drink.
At some point, a struggle ensued, police said, and one of the subjects discharged their firearm into the air before they all took off with Cuesta’s phone and belongings in the car with dark tints.
“It happened so fast,” Cuesta said, “15 seconds, 20 seconds.”
Surveillance cameras captured part of the ordeal, giving officers a clear look at the getaway vehicle, which was a white Dodge Charger with a distinctive brighter passenger-side HID headlight.
POLICE: Do you recognize this white Dodge Charger with a brighter passenger-side HID headlight? It was involved in a robbery and non-contact shooting near 3 Street and Collins Avenue. Call Crime Stoppers at https://t.co/rYWIrW8nIR. pic.twitter.com/Y6OEReN2Il
— Miami Beach Police (@MiamiBeachPD) October 23, 2018
Officials said nobody was injured during the robbery.
Investigators now need the public’s help in locating the subjects, adding that the shell casing from the shot fired is connected to another crime.
“A casing that was discovered in a shooting in Lake Worth, Fla., back in July,” said Miami Beach Police spokesperson Ernesto Rodriguez, “both these investigations together, to say how dangerous these men and women who are involved in this case are, and who knows what they’re actually capable of?”
If you have any information on this robbery, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.
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