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• Congratulations to Division Chiefs Shawn Abuhoff and Gabriela Alfaro who secured a guilty verdict of First-Degree Felony Murder, Attempted Felony Murder and two counts of Attempted Armed Robbery.
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| On February 19, 2013, the Defendant, who had recently been released from serving a sentence for armed robbery, encountered the two Victims. The Victims were visiting a friend who worked at Miami Shrimp in Opa-Locka and decided to walk across the shopping plaza to Top Value supermarket, to buy food and drinks for their family. The Defendant spotted them and noticed one of the Victim’s gold chain. Unbeknownst to them, the Defendant followed them into the supermarket and then waited for them outside in a parking lot area without surveillance cameras. |
| When the Victims exited the supermarket, the Defendant approached them, pointed a revolver, and demanded their money and jewelry. One of the Victims reached for his firearm, but the Defendant shot him in the chest before he could draw it. The Defendant then shot the other Victim four times before fleeing the scene. |
| One of the Victims survived the gunshot wound and described the Defendant to police while he was being treated at the hospital for his gunshot wound to the chest.
NBC News featured this case and showed a screenshot from the supermarket’s surveillance footage. The footage captured the Defendant's face and his distinctive shirt, which read “Deny Everything You Can.” |
| In 2017, a Crime Stoppers tip provided detectives with the Defendant’s information. When the Victim was shown a lineup, he immediately recognized the Defendant and said, “This is the guy who shot me.” The Defendant was subsequently arrested and interviewed. |
| At trial, the Victim testified about the encounter with the Defendant. He described how the Defendant approached them and demanded their money at gunpoint. He recalled being shot in the chest before he lost consciousness and waking up and realizing that his cousin and best friend had been shot and killed. The Victim identified the Defendant in court. |
| Lead Detective David Denmark testified about the police investigation and the Defendant’s statement was brought in through him. In his statement, the Defendant admitted to being the shooter, but claimed self-defense, asserting that both Victims had drawn their guns first. Medical Examiner, Dr. Lew, testified that Danny had been predominantly shot in the back of his body, an important fact that negated the Defendant’s claim that he acted in self-defense. |
| After a two-and-a-half-week trial, the jury deliberated for six hours and found the Defendant guilty on all counts. The Defendant was sentenced to life in prison on the spot. The next of kin, who had waited 11 long years for justice, were finally able to give their victim impact statements. |
| The ASAs would like to thank trial coordinators Anthony Valeriano and Cindy Milor, Homicide Counselor Marilyn Fiallos, Chief Assistant Kathleen Hoague, ASA Aaron Simkovitz and the Litigation Support Team for their dedication and assistance on this case. |
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• Congratulations to ASAs Khalil Quinan, Dara De Lucca, and Aaron Simkovitz for securing a guilty-as-charged verdict for First-Degree Murder, two counts of Armed Robbery with a Firearm, and Attempted Armed Robbery with a Firearm against the Defendant.
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| The Defendant and his Co-Defendant engaged in a spree of robberies in the early morning hours of August 8, 2020. The Co-Defendant, the driver of his mother’s silver Ford, and the Defendant, the gunman, robbed two victims at two Bank of America ATMs. After the second robbery, the Defendant saw the Victim walking to his job at KFC and instructed the Co-Defendant to pull around so he could rob him. The Defendant got out of the car and tried to rob the Victim of his satchel at gunpoint. When the Victim resisted, the Defendant shot twice, striking the Victim in the leg, and severing his femoral artery. |
| A quick and thorough investigation by Miami-Dade Police Homicide Detective Manresa, along with his squad and the Homicide Street Violence Task Force, led to the identification and arrest of both Defendants about 12 hours later. The thorough investigation by MDPD Homicide, along with parallel investigations by MDPD Robbery and Homestead Police, enabled MDPD Homicide Intelligence and Technology Squad Sgt. Cremisini to build a comprehensive summary of the digital evidence against both Defendants. |
| This summarized the movements of their mobile phones, the corresponding movement of a robbery Victim’s phone, and the incriminating post-murder activities of the Defendant, which included 19 Google searches and visits to over 50 websites in the hours following the murder. Sgt. Cremisini also located a first-person “Boomerang” video (a feature of Instagram) that was created by the Defendant an hour after the murder in which he brandished the murder weapon while wearing incriminating clothing. |
| After the Defendant was found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, Judge de la O sentenced him to life in prison. |
| The ASAs would like to thank former ASAs Simar Khera, Joseph-Robert Forman, and Christopher Flanagan along with the invaluable contributions of Secretaries Juanita White and Evika Jones, Paralegal Neith Gort, the entire Litigation Support team, intern Benjamin Spiegelman, and Homicide Counselor Andrea Marquez. |
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• Congratulations to ASAs Ayana Duncan and Stephanie Oraa for securing a guilty verdict of Second-Degree Murder. The Defendant faces a possible Life Sentence.
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| The Defendant and the Victim were husband and wife. Although they had been separated for months and the Defendant had moved out of the marital home, he had been attempting to reconcile with the Victim and salvage their almost 10-year marriage. |
| On the afternoon of the murder, the Victim told the Defendant over the phone that she did not want to rekindle the relationship with him. The Defendant drove to the Victim’s home, telling her that he wanted to pick up his exercise machine. When he arrived, the Defendant backed his SUV onto the driveway, got out, and began speaking with the Victim in front of the home about their relationship. When the Victim repeated that she did not want to continue the relationship, the Defendant became enraged. He walked to his SUV, picked up a knife in the center console, and stealthily approached the Victim and began stabbing her. |
| The Defendant drove away and phoned the Victim’s daughters, as well as several of the Victim’s relatives in the United States and Cuba, to tell them that he had just killed her. Then he drove to a fire station in Kendall to surrender to law enforcement. The Victim’s son-in-law rushed to the Victim’s residence and found her lifeless body on the driveway. He frantically phoned 911. The State admitted the 911 call during the trial and played it for the jury. |
| While at the fire station, the Defendant made several spontaneous statements and admissions about the murder to law enforcement, which were captured on body-worn camera. The State played the video of these compelling statements for the jury. |
| Throughout the trial, the defense unsuccessfully argued that the Defendant committed Manslaughter rather than Murder and that he killed the Victim from a heat of passion. This defense theory was contradicted by substantial evidence that proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed a second-degree, depraved-heart murder. |
| The ASAs would like to thank Felony Division Chiefs Cristina Diamond and Mari Jimenez, victim/witness counselor Jovani Rojas, Homicide Counselors Idalma Gurruchaga and Andrea Marquez, the Domestic Crimes Unit support team of Bertreece Wilder, Huldath Francois, and Tara Jones for their assistance throughout the trial. |
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• Congratulations to ASAs Mauricio Moreno and Jorge Rivera for securing a guilty verdict for Criminal Mischief with Damage Over $1,000.
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| The Victim, a quadriplegic, posted his mobility van for sale on Offer Up. The Defendant expressed interest in purchasing the van. The Victim and the Defendant exchanged messages about meeting at the Victim’s residence, but no appointment was made. Unexpectedly, the Defendant went to the Victim’s home while the Victim was at work, expecting to be able to buy the van. |
| The Defendant became enraged when he discovered that the Victim was not at home. The Defendant then used a machete to slash all the tires of the van and destroy its windshield. These acts were captured on surveillance video at the Victim’s residence and the person depicted on the video was consistent with the Defendant’s appearance. |
| However, it was not obvious that the person damaging the van was the Defendant because the video was not high-resolution. Also, the Victim and Defendant were strangers who had never seen each other in person, so the Victim could not conclusively identify the Defendant. |
| However, the prosecutors were able to use circumstantial evidence, the surveillance footage, images from Offer Up, and the Defendant’s motor vehicle records to prove that he committed the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. |
| The ASAs would like to thank Trial Coordinator Jackie Sanchez, Victim Witness Specialist Charlotte Pasko, and the Litigation Support team for all of their help. |
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• Congratulations to ASA Karla Aponte and Ian Leclerc for securing a guilty verdict of Stalking -Domestic Violence and Violation of Injunction.
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| The Defendant hacked into the Victim’s Google Drive and downloaded several photos and videos of the Victim in the nude. The Defendant then sent the Victim an email with her photos captioned “Uncensored Coming Soon.” |
| The ASAs introduced over eight exhibits: including the Defendant’s recorded confession, Miranda waiver, permanent injunction, and the photos of the violation. Contact between the Defendant and Victim complicated the case; however, the ASAs were able to prove the Defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, even eliciting a confession on the stand. |
