KEY LARGO, FLA. (WSVN) - A Homestead woman was arrested Wednesday after Monroe County deputies say she helped her teenage son flee the scene of a shooting and urged others not to contact police.
Cindy Mishelle Paniagua, 37, is charged with accessory after the fact after deputies say she picked up her 15-year-old son, Jonathan Enrique Valerio Paniagua, following a shooting at Key Largo Community Park on March 8.
Jonathan Paniagua faces charges of attempted murder and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, he shot another teenage boy during an altercation, leaving the victim with non-life-threatening injuries, including a gunshot wound to the hand and shrapnel injuries to his legs.
The Sheriff’s Office said Cindy Paniagua not only picked up her son after the shooting, but also refused to contact law enforcement and told others not to call 911. Multiple witnesses confirmed her actions during the investigation.
“This young man potentially ruined his life by attempting to take another life and sadly his mother tried to help him get away with it,” said Sheriff Rick Ramsay. “Mrs. Paniagua is a bad example for other parents and her actions only made the situation worse.”
Deputies responded to the park around 9:50 p.m. on the night of the shooting for reports of gunfire, but no one on scene could provide information.
The 16-year-old victim later showed up at Mariners Hospital in Tavernier and was later flown to HCA Florida Kendall Hospital in Miami for further treatment.
Investigators believe the shooting may have stemmed from a dispute over a girl.
The Sheriff’s Office Dive Team later recovered a wallet belonging to Jonathan Paniagua and clothing matching the shooter’s description from a nearby canal.
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