Mother, security guard arrested after 2 girls hurt in Hialeah shooting linked to supermarket theft
MIAMI FL July 30 2020 Two young sisters were taken to the hospital after they came under fire while riding in a car that, police said, was the getaway vehicle in a supermarket theft in Hialeah.
7News cameras captured crime scene tape and Miami-Dade Police officers near Northwest 19th Avenue and 60th Street in Northwest Miami-Dade, Tuesday afternoon.
The girls’ mother, identified as Angela Pupo, initially claimed they were shot at while driving in that area, saying “they were shot by two Black men as they drove thru,” according to a police report.
Officers combed the area searching for evidence, and detectives confirmed the shooting did not happen there but in Hialeah.
Hialeah Police later confirmed the shooting occurred at a Rey Chavez supermarket in the area of West 17th Street and Seventh Avenue, near U.S. 27.
According to the arrest report, Pupo later changed her story and said “they were shot at by a security guard while fleeing from a theft.”
Detectives said a store security guard pointed his gun and fired one round into a blue Toyota Corolla after a man, identified as Steadman Amaya, Pupo’s ex-boyfriend, apparently shoplifted a box of lobster tails and ran outside the supermarket’s doors.
The gunfire hit the girls, who were riding in the backseat.
The security guard, identified as Leonardo Morales Gomez, has since been arrested.
According to investigators, the girls’ mother pulled up to Ryder Trauma Center with the injured children just before 1 p.m.
7SkyForce HD hovered over the hospital where two police cruisers could be seen parked near a blocked off blue older model Corolla with the passenger’s side door open.
Police said the 6-year-old and 8-year-old both suffered injuries to the thigh.
7News cameras captured one of the victims walking near the Corolla. Her beige shorts appeared to have blood on them.
Her mother was later seen helping the struggling child onto a stretcher near the emergency room.
Police confirmed the children are in stable condition and are expected to be OK.
Their mother was later put in handcuffs and taken into custody by Hialeah Police. She was charged with theft and two counts of child neglect.
Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo “Freddy” Ramirez III reacted to the shooting in a tweet.
The Corolla was later towed from the hospital.
Gomez has been charged with two counts of attempted second-degree murder.
If you have any information on this shooting or Amaya’s whereabouts, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.
WSVN
