MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Miami-Dade police took residents' concerns into action Thursday by conducting traffic stops at one of the busiest intersections in Miami-Dade County.
"Through the Next Door app, we asked the community to kind of give us a voice on areas of concern for traffic concerns that they had. And this was one of the locations we chose, even though it's being conducted throughout the whole county," Miami-Dade police Detective Argemis Colome said.
Colome said residents in the area call authorities every single day about the intersection at Southwest Eighth Street and 137th Avenue, saying drivers are going well over 60 mph in a 35 mph zone.
"We do have specialized units that handle just traffic, and these are the units that you may see spread throughout the county. They're in a motor unit or in a police vehicle that actually address those areas of concern," Colome said.
Authorities used the parking lot of a Walgreens at the corner of the intersection to safely pull over drivers.
"Today's operation actually is being conducted with corroboration with the NICB," Colome said.
Miami-Dade police were also strictly enforcing valid insurance cards. Colome said once the driver is pulled over, officers make a call to the National Insurance Crime Bureau to determine whether the identification is real or fake.
"They're actually going to be able to verify on the spot if the insurance is valid or fraudulent," Colome said. "If they are caught with a fraudulent insurance card, they can actually be arrested on the spot. It's a third-degree felony, which faces up to five years in prison."
