Slain Miami-Dade Cop's Body Arrives In Miami
MIAMI (CBSMiami.com) – The body of Miami-Dade Police officer Juan Aviles arrived in Miami Tuesday nearly a week after he and his sister were gunned down in Villalba, Puerto Rico.
Authorities in Puerto Rico said the 34-year-old Aviles and his sister were killed at about 3:30 in the morning on May 12. It is a remote area on that island. It's not clear what the motive was or why they were out so early in the morning.
Puerto Rican police say Aviles and his sister were not robbed. They are investigating the sister's ex-boyfriend. They also say that three envelopes filled with white powder were found at the crime scene. Police there confirmed it was cocaine.
While the Puerto Rican authorities are still investigating the circumstances that led to the shooting death of Aviles; the CBS4 I-Team discovered that Officer Aviles was a key witness in the Wackenhut Metro Rail fraud case.
Officer Aviles, as outlined in arrest warrants, was an individual who gave testimony in the case that included allegations that the county paid Wackenhut for security services that the company never produced.
Officer Aviles had testified that he previously worked for Wackenhut from 2000 to 2003. According to one warrant Aviles swore to, "One of the posts was routinely left unmanned. He advised that it was because Wackenhut was billing Miami-Dade County as if the post was manned. He added that this was known as a 'ghost post' among supervisors."
Aviles was married with several children. His wife recently had twins. He joined Miami-Dade Police in December of 2006 and worked in the Midwest district and was based in Doral. Aviles' widow is also a Miami-Dade officer. She works in the South District.
Miami-Dade Police are respecting the jurisdiction that police in Puerto Rico have. But they are offering to send any resources that are necessary to Puerto Rico to help in this investigation.
A private funeral will be held for Aviles on Wednesday at the Bernardo Garcia Funeral Home in Kendall. A memorial mass is scheduled for Thursday at the St. Richard Catholic Church in Palmetto Bay.
A Trust Fund has been established for the family of Juan Aviles. The Police Officer Assistance Trust has setup two easy ways to donate either through a check or online.
Online – The website is www.poat.org. Click on the link on the homepage to make your donation with a credit or debit card or by check. If paying by check, make it payable to the Police Officer Assistance Trust or POAT. Please notate Officer Juan Aviles Trust Fund in the memo area of your check.
Mail to:
Police Officer Assistance Trust
1030 NW 111 Avenue
Miami, Florida 33172
