“Help me. Please help me,” a man yelled desperately for help. His screams alerted the neighbors and were recorded by a surveillance camera.
“Me and my son were inside, and we went out. We thought, someone was hurt or something,” says Cristina, a witness to what happened last Sunday, shortly after eleven in the morning, when this happened at the intersection of 32 Southwest Avenue and 7th Street, in the city of Miami.
According to the arrest report, the person calling for help was walking with a woman when a man suddenly approached them. The subject – identified as Vladimir Rodríguez, 55 years old – allegedly grabbed him by the neck, pointed a weapon at him and began to force him into a vehicle.
The witness recalls: “The boy who asked for help says: ‘He has a revolver. He has a gun… please help me. He has a gun, please.
“So I tell my son: ‘stay out, we have to call the police.’ Because you know, when they have a weapon they can shoot anywhere”, the witness specifies.
According to the woman, the shot was caused by her accidentally, while she was trying to take the gun from Rodríguez. She was able to do it and says that’s when she threw the gun into the bushes.
Finally, the woman and Rodríguez – the alleged defendant – escaped from the scene, while the victim waited for the police.
“The boy told them what was happening: ‘That he was dating a girl and that the ex came. That was what I heard”, says Cristina, who witnessed what happened.
Rodríguez was arrested and this Monday he appeared in bail court. He now faces charges of attempted kidnapping and physical assault, while being prohibited from approaching or contacting the victim.
