El Taiger’s death: Records show ‘person of interest’ is convicted felon who lived in Hialeah as registered sex offender

Detectives searched for Damian Valdez-Galloso on Friday to ask him about his time with a Cuban reggaeton star who died after police officers found him with a gunshot wound to the head.in MIami. (FILE FDLE, FDOC, M-DCR)

MIAMI – Detectives were searching Friday for a man with a dark past — who vanished after police officers found a Cuban reggaeton star in a black Mercedez-Benz sports utility vehicle on Oct. 3, in Miami’s Health District, in Allapattah

According to the Miami Police Department, Jose “El Taiger” Carbajal had suffered a gunshot wound to the head when they found him in the parked Mercedez-Benz, outside of the Jackson Behavioral Health Hospital. He underwent surgery at Jackson Memorial Hospital and died there about a week later, police said.

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Detectives want to ask Damian Valdez-Galloso, also known as “El Narra,” questions about his time with Carbajal, 37, of Havana, before he was shot.

Records show Miami police’s “person of interest” in the case is a convicted felon who lived in Hialeah as a registered sex offender. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had also detained him twice. State corrections last released him from prison on Sept. 2, 2020.

According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Valdez-Galloso, 49, last reported living in a coral-colored house at the corner of Southeast Fifth Street and Fifth Avenue.

According to the Florida Department of Corrections, Valdez-Galloso was convicted of six criminal offenses in 2007, 2008, 2016, 2017, and 2018. The two cases in 2007 and 2008 were for adult sex with a 16 to 17-year-old. The three cases in 2016 and 2017 were for failure to register as a sex offender. The case in 2018 was for grand theft. ICE detained him in 2015 and 2019.

Miami-Dade County Crime Stoppers released a flyer asking the public for help finding Valdez-Galloso. Detectives asked anyone with information about this or other cases to call Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477 if they want to stay anonymous.


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