MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A burglary suspect fired at police officers after leading them on a chase in northeast Miami-Dade, authorities confirmed. Now, the officers involved are thankful to be alive.
A Local 10 News crew was in the area of Northeast 79th Street and Fourth Avenue as authorities were focusing their attention on a white pickup truck that was parked near some warehouses.
Police were also spotted looking along the nearby train tracks and collecting bags of evidence.
Officers from the El Portal Police department, officer Emilie Poveda and officer Victor Riveron, as well as Miami-Dade police departments, responded to the scene.
A lieutenant from the Village of El Portal Police Department confirmed that the burglary was reported around 3:30 a.m.
According to Lt. Alejandro Mendez, the residents of the home picked up movement of a man in a white hat checking the door of their home on their Ring video before they called 911.
Police said the man fled the scene in a white pickup truck, which they chased until it came to a final stop less than a mile away.
According to Mendez, the driver fired his gun during the incident. “As they’re pursuing, one of the officers pulls up on the right hand side -- that’s when he discharges,” he said.
Police said the suspect stole a generator and a few other things from the home.
The suspect remains at large.
One of the officers the burglary suspect shot at is El Portal Police officer Poveda, who has been on the force for nine years. Thursday morning, she saw her life flash before her eyes.
She is a single mom, and the love of her life is her seven-year-old son, David.
“Thank you, God, for letting me come home to my son,” said Poveda. “My day consists of working the midnight shift, so, that way he doesn’t miss me.”
She says all she could think about as the horrifying incident happened was her son. “At the moment I’m thinking, ‘I need to get home to my son.’” She added, “I’m just happy to be here do my job and see another day.”
The other officer who was shot at, El Portal Police officer Riveron, is also lucky to be alive. “It was a pretty scary situation to think someone can take a shot at you with complete disregard for human life,” he said. “I’ve never been fired on before, and all I thought about was getting home to my family.”
Officials say the situation remains dangerous since the suspect is clearly armed and committing burglaries late into the night.
The burglary comes after other similar incidents have been reported to El Portal police.
In one recent case, a brazen prowler was captured on surveillance video at the front door of a neighbor’s home.
The small community is now on edge, but also on high alert.
“That’s very unsettling that someone’s looking at you,” one resident said.