A pink bicycle led to the capture of a known violent offender by a quick-working team of Miami-Dade Hammocks District police on Sept. 12.Just moments after an armed robbery at a Farm Store drive-in at 11700 Quail Roost Dr., a five-man team led by Sgt. Ricardo Toledo arrived to learn how the salesperson feared for her life during a holdup.
“As she completed her transaction with another customer, a male subject walked up to the window and handed her a note, demanding money, while implying with his hand that he was concealing a firearm,” Maj. Hernan M. Organvidez described in a citation for the officers
“The victimized salesperson ran to the back of the store and locked herself into a walk-in cooler.” However, the customer she had been waiting on alerted police to the crime-in-progress with Sgt. Toledo immediately responding, along with Officers Enrique Noriega Jr. and Giovanni Rodriguez in one police cruiser.
Meanwhile, Officers Javier Valdez and Adalberto Alvarez sped to an area in a second cruiser, arriving immediately west of the Farm Store drive through to spot the escaping subject pedaling the pink-colored bicycle, just two blocks away.
Quickly making a safety stop, the male offender was apprehended without incident and a patdown revealed his possession of the money taken from the cash register.
“The teamwork and attention to duty resulted in this arrest,” stated Maj. Organvidez and Capt. Miguel Hernandez, who with James Blough, chair of the district’s Citizens Advisory Committee, presented citations as “Officers of the Month” to all five on Sept. 26.
As for that pink bicycle?
We just happened to know of a nice little girl who deserved to get it,” Sgt. Toledo added.
