NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - Police took three people into custody following a chaotic chain of events that began with an armed carjacking in Hialeah and ended in a police-involved shooting in North Miami that sent one of the subjects to the hospital.
Cellphone video captured the aftermath of the shooting in the area of Northwest 127th Street and 15th Avenue, Thursday.
The footage captured paramedics treating the injured subject as he lay on the sidewalk with what appear to be multiple gunshot wounds.
Investigators said a Hialeah Police officer shot him after he ran away from a crashed SUV that had been stolen at gunpoint.
Detectives said one of the subjects was armed with a gun, forcing an officer to discharge his own weapon, hitting the suspect.
But two witnesses who spoke with 7News on Thursday night said they never saw a gun.
“We could see everything, literally everything that happened.,” said one witness.
The witnesses, who asked to remain anonymous, said they live in the area and happened to walk up right before the shooting.
“Even if the police did say ‘stop,’ [the officer] didn’t have a reason to shoot, to fire,” said one witness. “If you look at all the bullet holes that was in the kid, it was in his back and his back buttocks.”
Just hours earlier, police said, they responded to a carjacking in Hialeah.
Investigators said the subjects targeted an 82-year-old man in the area of East 11th Avenue and 20th Street, at around 8:30 a.m.
Thursday night, the elderly victim, Miguel Castillo, shared his account of the incident.
“It happened very fast,” he said.
Castillo said he was coming home from the gym when he was approached by a stranger.
“I saw that a guy was coming, touched me, and got very close to me and put a gun to my head,” he said.
Castillo said the man took his watch, wallet and the keys to his red 2017 Ford Escape.
“He turned on the car and got away,” he said.
Several hours later, a Hialeah Police officer located the stolen SUV and attempted to stop the crooks. A brief pursuit crossed into North Miami when the subjects skidded off the road, running over a street sign and came to a stop by a tree.
Investigators said the subjects ditched the vehicle and fled on foot.
“Police was all over the place — dogs, helicopters were everywhere,” said area resident Vince Angilot.
Paramedics airlifted the injured subject to Ryder Trauma Center for treatment. His condition is unknown.
A first responder described the subject’s injuries in radio transmissions.
“We have an adult male, one gunshot wound to the back and two gunshot wounds to the buttocks,” said the first responder. “For information, the patient is under arrest, and there is going to be a [police department] rider with the patient.”
Officers set up a perimeter and searched for the two other subjects. They were both detained shortly after.
Area residents were startled to hear about the shooting.
“It’s really dangerous out here,” said Jason Wallace. “Imagine if I was home or outside, and something like this happens. It’s really dangerous.
No officers were injured.
Hialeah Police Lt. Eddie Rodriguez later issued a statement that reads, “[The Florida Department of Law Enforcement] will investigate the use of force by our officer. We are fortunate to have taken three very dangerous criminals off our streets.”
FDLE officials later arrived at the scene of the shooting with their mobile command unit to begin their investigation.
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