Authorities Say Newly Released Suspect Was Falsely Accused

Miami Detectives Question Motives Of Alleged False Testimony

After a local Brownsville man was slain in a shooting outside a grocery store in February, homicide detectives were given testimony by an alleged eyewitness to the crime. The source, who came forward to police of his own free will, pointed the 20-year old suspect out to detectives and identified him as the shooter. Shortly after arresting the young alleged murderer, however, Miami-Dade investigators say they were approached by a young teen that confessed to the crime, even offering to apologize to the family of the victim.

According to a statement released by a commander with the Miami Police Department and head of the homicide unit, officials immediately notified the State Attorney’s Office in order to drop charges against the 20-year old man. He claims that the homicide detectives investigating the case were thorough, and that information obtained from the eyewitness matched details from the crime scene, with the corroborating evidence convincing them of the witness’s integrity.

Prosecutors say a judge signed off on the initial arrest warrant against the 20-year old suspect, who had a minor rap sheet before the latest incident. The Miami-Dade police issued an official apology to the young man, who was in jail for 37 days on charges of second-degree homicide.

Investigators say they are searching for the initial eyewitnesses for questioning, but he is nowhere to be found. The witness originally reached out to law enforcement shortly after the February 2^nd shooting, claiming that the suspect had accused him of stealing his car several days before the incident. He allegedly recognized the suspect by his face and voice despite the shooter wearing a hoodie during the attack.

Officials have placed the 17-year old who confessed to the murder under arrest. The teen came to their attention while under investigation for an unrelated incident, an armed robbery in March, after his alleged partner-in-crime told them the young man had committed the murder. Under questioning, the teen told homicide detectives he had shot the victim in retaliation for being beaten over a drug dispute.

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