Miami PD: Polyamorous relationship leads to woman being shot in neck

Lareine Barbie Cruz. (Miami-Dade Corrections & Rehabilitation)

MIAMI – A 22-year-old Miami woman is facing serious charges after shooting another woman in the neck over the weekend, authorities said.

According to an arrest report, the shooting occurred at about 2 p.m. Saturday at an apartment building located at 58 NE 14th St.

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Miami police said officers arrived and found the victim bleeding from the neck in front of the apartment building.

She was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital for treatment.

According to the report, officers went to the 31st floor of the building where they found a large blood trail throughout the hallway.

Once they reached the suspect’s front door, they ordered her to come out. The suspect, Lareine Barbie Cruz, complied and was immediately detained, police said.

According to authorities, officers at the scene spoke with a man who has been making a DoorDash delivery when he witnessed the shooting.

The man told police that he rode up to the 31st floor with the victim, who appeared to be angry, and witnessed her banging on the door to an apartment unit and then kicking it.

He said he then heard a gunshot and saw the victim holding her neck and bleeding.

The man told police he was unsure who fired the gun, and took cover in a nearby unit.

According to the report, moments after the shooting, another man arrived at the scene and began asking for the victim.

Police said that man told officers that he had been in a polyamorous relationship with the victim and Cruz, but he began having “relationship issues” with the victim so he started to date only Cruz, which made the victim “jealous.”

According to police, the man had slept over Cruz’s home the night before and woke up Saturday morning and began to smoke on the balcony.

Police said the victim spotted him from her own apartment balcony, which is across from Cruz’s, and began to scream at him, “That’s what you want to do?”

According to the arrest report, the man told officers that he immediately went inside because he didn’t want to be involved in “drama,” but then later received a phone call from Cruz telling him that the victim was outside her apartment.

“Come get your girl. She is outside banging on my door,” she told him, according to the report.

Police said the man then tried to call the victim, but she didn’t answer.

A short time later, he received another call from Cruz, telling him that she had just shot the victim, authorities said.

According to the arrest report, the victim did not enter Cruz’s apartment prior to Cruz shooting “blindly through the door, striking the victim in the neck.”

Cruz was arrested on charges of attempted second-degree murder and displaying a firearm while committing a felony.

As of Tuesday afternoon, she remained at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center without bond.


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Amanda Batchelor is the Digital Executive Producer for Local10.com.

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