MIAMI – Miami police have arrested a suspect in connection with an October shooting in the city’s Allapattah neighborhood that left a man hurt, authorities confirmed Thursday.
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Police said officers were initially dispatched on Oct. 24 to a home near the 1800 block of Northwest 42nd Street after a report of gunfire, where they found a man suffering from a graze wound on his right elbow.
Detectives said the victim declined medical transport, but he shared his account of the incident with officers, describing an encounter he said left him “fearing for his life.”
A Miami police officer who responded to the scene reported that the victim was sitting in the passenger seat of a car outside the residence when he noticed a white or beige pickup truck speeding toward him.
According to the victim, the truck came to an abrupt stop, and the driver, identified by police as 23-year-old Rolando Noel Canales, jumped out and began shooting.
The victim told detectives that he quickly exited his vehicle and ran to the rear of the property to avoid being hit, while he believed that a second person, standing by the front door of the home, was likely the intended target, the report stated.
Detectives said they later found six spent shell casings that belonged to a .380 caliber gun.
A 2017 red Buick parked nearby had been struck three times, with bullet holes in the driver’s window, door frame, and front windshield, according to an arrest report.
Investigators searched the area and found surveillance footage from a nearby Ring camera at a home where the shooting was reported.
Police later confirmed that the Ring camera did not capture the shooting itself. However, they said a second victim reported hearing several shots and running toward the back of the property, though he did not see who was firing.
The second victim later mentioned that Canales might’ve been linked to a woman named “Meche,” a mutual acquaintance whose ex-boyfriend was incarcerated, according to investigators.
Weeks earlier, police said the second victim and his incarcerated friend had been on a three-way call with Meche when an unidentified man, believed to be Canales, joined the call and began cursing at them, according to investigators.
After reviewing the available evidence, crime scene technicians photographed the scene and recovered a black iPhone from near the victim’s vehicle, which authorities believe belonged to Canales.
The second victim reported seeing Canales exit the vehicle and begin firing multiple shots toward him, forcing him to duck beneath the dashboard for cover, according to police. He said he briefly saw the truck speed away after the gunfire stopped.
In his statement, police said the victim explained that his friend’s former girlfriend was acquainted with the shooter and had recently visited their residence. The victim believed Canales might have acted out of jealousy, suspecting that his friend and the woman were spending time together while he was at work, investigators confirmed.
That same day, detectives presented the victim with a photo lineup, where he identified Canales as the shooter, according to police.
Police said Canales was taken into custody without incident around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Later that afternoon, detectives read Canales his Miranda rights before conducting an interview. Police said he denied the allegations but did not provide additional details about his whereabouts during the shooting.
Jail records show he is facing one count of attempted murder with a firearm.
As of Thursday, Canales is being held without bond at the Metrowest Detention Center.
A motive for the shooting remains unclear at this time.