A gunman killed a security guard at a Florida martini bar early Saturday morning and died in a shootout with police after a brawl at the bar, injuring seven others, including a police officer.
Police said a security guard at the Martini Bar on CityPlace Doral tried to break up a fight between customers around 3:30 a.m. when one of the men pulled out a gun.
“The security guard on duty intervened, at which time the subject produced a firearm and shot and killed the security guard,” Miami-Dade Police Detective Alvaro Zabaleta said in a press conference. According to WSVN.
Two Doral police officers immediately responded to the scene and engaged the gunman.
“There was an exchange of gunfire between the subject and the officer. The officer shot and killed the subject. However, the officer sustained a gunshot wound to his lower leg,” Zabaleta said.
The slain security guard was identified as George Castellanos. According to Local 10 News.
William Suedowa, who lives in the City Place Apartments near the bar, said he first heard three gunshots around 3 a.m., followed by 10 to 15 more shots.
“My apartment is very close to all the music. It was very loud. I felt it in my heart,” Suedowa told Local 10. It was pretty scary. ”
Suedwa witnessed people fleeing the popular bar in panic before police swarmed the area.
“I saw a woman on the ground. I didn’t know if she had been hit, if she was hurt, if she was scared. It was really crazy,” Suedova said.
According to police, six people in the vicinity, five men and one woman, were injured in the shooting.
Two people were taken to the hospital, where two were in critical condition and four were in stable condition.
Doral Police Chief Edwin Lopez said the injured officer, a four-year veteran, was wearing a tourniquet on himself, adding it was too early to determine who was shot by whom. Ta.
Police further added that the injured officer is expected to make a full recovery.
“We are grateful that he is alive and in stable condition and look forward to completing our investigation,” Lopez said.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniela Levine Cava thanked the officers who responded to the shooting for keeping our community safe, writing to X: For all the injured and the families of the victims. We are so thankful for the men and women in uniform who keep us safe today and every day. ”
Officials say there are currently three active investigations into the incident.
Doral police are investigating the initial fight, Miami-Dade police are conducting a homicide investigation, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement will investigate the officer-involved shooting.
