MIAMI (WSVN) — A mother shot on Mother’s Day is speaking out after she took a bullet to save her husband’s life during a drive-by that hurt two other relatives in Miami.
A few hours before the sun came up on Mother’s Day, Elba Panameno and two family members were shot outside her apartment on Northwest 59th Street and First Avenue.
The shooting put Panameno in an unimaginable situation — she would push her husband back into their apartment in order to shield him from the gunfire. Then, after getting shot and falling to the ground, she watched as the shooter sped away.
"All I was thinking about was my kid and my husband," said Panameno. "I thought I was going to die. I thought I was going to die. I thought it was the last breath I was going to take."
Panameno, who was shot in the leg, had walked outside with her husband to quiet another family who were in the midst of an argument when she heard gunfire. Seconds later, she was struck. "I saw a guy creeping up past the stop sign, and he started blasting five rounds," she said. "I’m a mother. I’m a daughter. I’m a sister. This gun violence needs to stop."
Her brother was hit in the hand and her brother-in-law is now undergoing surgery on his arm after being struck by one of the bullets.
"Whoever did it, I hope they burn in hell because that’s something you don’t do," said Betty Panameno, a family member.
Panameno hopes to go home Monday to be with her children and husband.
In the meantime, no arrests have been made.
If you have any information on this drive-by shooting, please call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $3,000 reward.