MIAMI (WSVN) - A Swedish student is speaking out after he was shot and robbed in Wynwood just days before his school graduation.
Twenty-eight-year-old Frank Hammar said he feels lucky to be alive after he was shot twice in the abdomen.
Hammar is currently at Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center. Hammar told 7News how, on Tuesday evening, he was having dinner at the Wynwood Diner with his parents, who had flown in from Sweden.
As he was walking home, Hammar said, he was approached by two men who demanded his valuables. One of them pulled out a gun. “I took out my cellphone, put it on the ground. I told them to take it easy,” Hammar said. “The guy tells me he has one bullet in the chamber, pulls out the magazine, puts it back in.”
Hammar said that when he looked at the robbers, he could tell that he had no other options, and they were going to shoot. “You could tell there was nothing I could say, really,” Hammar said. “They were in cold mode, and it didn’t matter, obviously, what kind of money I gave them or not.”
Hammar’s prediction turned out to be correct. “The other guy said something like, ‘Blast him,’ or, ‘Pop him,'” Hammar said. “The guy with the gun fires two bullets. When it happened, I kind of felt like I would die. I kind of felt like I was lucid enough for it to not be mortal wounds or something. It was only when I saw that there was a lot of blood that I thought that I might bleed to death.”
Doctors said one of the bullets landed close to Hammar’s spine. However, someone called 911, and EMS workers were able to save his life. “He lost a lot of blood on the scene,” said a doctor. “The Miami EMS system is so great, and they were able to rescue him really fast.”
“They immediately went to work. [They asked], ‘What can we do?'” said Dan Flora, a friend of the victim.
Since Hammar is an international student and has no health insurance in the U.S., friends and classmates started a GoFundMe page to help pay for his medical expenses. “[We’re] just trying to get him medical insurance, extending his visa, raising the funds for him,” said Flora.
As of late Friday night, it had raised more than $12,000 in less than 24 hours.
Hammar said that he now intends to be more cautious, because this can happen in places other than Wynwood. “Obviously, I am going to be a hell of a lot more careful now,” he said.
Due to Hammar’s injuries, he was unable to attend his graduation from Miami Ad School, Friday. His family, who traveled from Sweden to witness his graduation, attended the ceremony on his behalf and were presented with a special golden hammer. Hammar’s classmates also signed his diploma.
Since he couldn’t be there, Hammar recorded a special video message that played at the moment his parents accepted their son’s award. “My final advice? Carry a date wallet when walking though Wynwood,” he said during the clip. “Take care, everyone. I love you all.”
Police continue searching for the gunman.
If you have any information on this armed 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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