MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - A Miami Beach commissioner said he and a car crook had a chilling confrontation in the parking garage of his condominium that led to a call to 911 and a gun aimed right at him.
Commissioner Joe Magazine is an advocate for reducing crime in Miami Beach, but during some frightening moments on Thursday morning, he became the victim of one.
“[I was] just casually walking, like any other morning, over to my car,” he said, “like any other normal day.”
But it wasn’t just any day for this newly elected city official who champions public safety. As he was getting ready to head to work, he soon discovered a burglar had different plans.
“[I] open the car door, and out essentially falls a person, unexpectedly,” Magazine told 7News. “A person was in my driver’s seat.”
Within the parking garage of his West Avenue condominium, a crook spilled out of his vehicle.
“He starts taking off right away, kinda pushes me aside,” he said.
Shocked, the commissioner called police. He described the moments that followed.
“I’m on the phone with 911, so I follow him through this door,” said Magazine.
Surveillance video shows the burglar exiting the garage, with Magazine close behind. Both men rounded a corner and walked out of the frame.
Moments later, the commissioner said, a bad situation got worse.
“And he turns around, gun’s already pulled, right at my chest,” he said.
When asked what was going through his mind as he stared down the barrel of a gun, Magazine, who has a young daughter, said, “There, what was really troubling is, I knew my life was no longer in my control.”
Magazine said he chose to stand still and comply with the gunman.
“He wasn’t going to miss me. I just stopped in my tracks, put my arms up,” he said. “He started taking another step or two toward me with his gun.”
Magazine said the perpetrator then said, “Get the [expletive] back.”
When asked whether his life is flashing before his eyes, Magazine replied, “Quite literally.”
But after a few a seconds, Magazine said, the gunman turned around and left.
“I retreated that way and ran around the building,” he said. “By the time I even got to the other side of my building, you had police coming down West Avenue.”
A surveillance still shows what appears to be a gun in the burglar’s right hand.
“It appears to be a firearm there,” said Magazine.
As of Friday night, police continue their search for the subject captured on surveillance video wearing an orange bucket hat, striped shirt and shorts. Police said he stands about 5 feet, 7 inches tall and has a medium build.
If you have any information on this incident or the subject’s whereabouts, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a reward of up to $5,000.
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