Shooting Shuts Down Miami Beach Street
MIAMI BEACH (CBSMiami.com) – An argument between two men ended up with a massive police response and an officer firing their weapon Friday afternoon in Miami Beach.
According to Officer Deborah Doty of the Miami Beach Police Department, police received two 911 calls about the argument. Callers told police that one of the men had a gun.
Miami Beach Police arrived on the scene and began chasing the man as he began running towards Collins Avenue from the intersection of Washington Avenue and 16th Street.
"They're telling him, 'hey stop; put your hands up; turn around," Officer Doty said. "They don't' see him stop and he continues to run and he's not listening to any of his commands. They're approaching Collins and he turns around to go into his waistband and pull out the weapon."
The police response left witnesses trying to figure out exactly what happened.
"As I was watching it I was thinking what did this guy do?," security guard Josue Ceac, who witnessed the incident, said. "Because all the cops came out and every cop had a gun and these were big guns. So I was like 'this guy was really that dangerous?'"
The suspect continued to run and entered a parking garage. Miami Beach Police sent in K-9's, which eventually found the man. The suspect's gun and some bullets were also found by police.
No one was hurt in the incident, which Officer Doty credited to the training police receive.
"It's busy there are a lot of people walking the area; so thank God our officers were professional enough to keep everyone safe. And that comes from severe training," Doty said.
But for tourists hoping for a quiet day on the beach, the incident was a rude awakening.
"It's a little bit scary, definitely scary, and we're just visiting here," said tourist Ruby Qureshi. "So I guess, welcome to Miami."
