NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, Fla. – The men suspected of shooting an off-duty Miami-Dade police officer have been arrested. On Sunday, police identified them as Travares Santiago, Dedrick Brown, and Willie Barney.
According to authorities, the men demanded the officer hand over his jewelry as he was leaving church at 6701 NW 7th Avenue on Saturday. Police say Barney shot the officer in the chest with a semi-automatic pistol, before all three men took off in a red Pontiac G6.
The officer called 911 after he was shot. A responding officer put him into the back of his patrol car and drove him to the hospital.
Officers on the scene said that the wounded cop is a sexual battery detective.
He was released from Jackson Memorial Hospital Saturday night, police said.
"He's in good spirits. He's alert and speaking," Lt. Rosanna Cordero-Stutz told Local 10.
"A collective sigh of relief is all I can tell you that was felt across Miami-Dade Police Department as well as hopefully the entire community. This is a worst-case scenario for us. As you know, it is still fresh in our history where we have lost officers in the line of duty and everyday we pray that doesn't happen," she said.
The department had said it would offer rewards for information leading them to the suspects, but detectives have not said how they found the men.
All three face charges of robbery and attempted murder.