Four Miami-Dade officers have been charged in connection with the death of Cuban UPS driver Frank Ordoñez and the driver of a private vehicle, during a shootout between police and thieves from a jewelry store in Coral Gables on December 5, 2019.
The accusation comes four and a half years after the armed robbery of the Regent jewelry store in Miracle Mile and the hijacking of a UPS truck by the robbers, events that culminated in a dramatic police chase and a shootout in which two innocent bystanders and the assailants lost their lives.
The Miami-Dade Police Benevolent Association (PBA) confirmed on Monday that four officers have been charged in connection with the shooting in December 2019, which resulted in the deaths of Ordóñez and 70-year-old Richard Cutshaw, who was driving to his home.
The names of the police officers have not been disclosed, nor have the charges they face been revealed.
"We are very disappointed that after nearly five years, these officers are being charged for something they had only seconds to decide," expressed the Miami-Dade PBA in a statement, as reported by América TeVé.
"This creates a chilling effect on the officers of Broward County, where the State Attorney’s Office is prosecuting an officer for not responding to an active shooter and is now accusing officers for responding to active shooters. As the process unfolds, we will monitor it and defend our officers," stated the declaration signed by Steadman Stahl, president of the PBA in South Florida.
The Ordóñez family filed a civil lawsuit against the authorities, but in August 2022, a judge in Broward County ruled that they did not have the right to sue due to sovereign immunity.
After it was reported on Monday that four officers will be tried in a criminal proceeding, Luz Apolinario Merino, Ordóñez's mother, stated via phone to América TeVé: "There was no need for this to happen and for my son and that man to lose their lives..."
The distressed mother stated that she is "hoping for a fair trial, that every judge who is appointed that day places their hand on their heart and feels the pain of a mother who has lost her son. I saw him die on television."
Joe Merino, Ordóñez's stepfather, told the news channel that the accusation against the police is "surprising after four and a half years" and emphasized: "At last there is progress; I'm not going to say that there is justice yet because I still can't see justice in that tunnel."
Referring to PBA's statement, Merino asserted: “We’re not talking about seconds, we’re talking about hours, because it started in Coral Gables, from Coral Gables to the Turnpike, and from the Turnpike 25 miles to the Miramar exit. Three helicopters, five police departments. They could have called in advance: ‘Close this exit, close that exit,’ so that even if they ran out of gas on the Turnpike, they could have negotiated.”
Frank Ordóñez was 27 years old when the incident occurred. He lived in Hialeah Gardens and was the father of two girls who were five and three years old at the time.
The young Cuban had been working at UPS for five years, but December 5 was his first day as a driver for the company when the robbers from the jewelry store located at 386 Miracle Mile in Miami hijacked his vehicle, taking him hostage as they fled.
This triggered a high-speed police chase spanning 25 miles, crossing several cities in Miami-Dade before reaching Broward County, and it was broadcast live on television.
The truck stopped at a traffic light near the intersection of Miramar Parkway and Flamingo Road, where it was surrounded by more than a dozen police officers. A preliminary investigation revealed that approximately 200 bullet rounds struck the UPS truck.
According to the authorities' account, the suspects opened fire on the officers, which triggered an intense shootout between law enforcement and the assailants, resulting in the deaths of two innocent people: Ordóñez and Cutshaw, in addition to the two robbers.
After the tragic outcome, Ordóñez's family held the police responsible for his death.
In statements to the press, Roy Ordóñez, Frank's brother, said: “We had to watch my brother be murdered on live television. We all had to see it. They used civilian cars as shields. To say that what they did was total bravery is false and disrespectful to the people.”
"They killed him," Merino said to a television channel, asserting that the tragic event "could have been avoided" and that it was the police's responsibility to prevent the death of an innocent young man.
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