Man shot & killed by off-duty Miami-Dade police officer in Homestead

Homestead, FLA – An off-duty Miami-Dade police officer shot a man dead in the parking lot of a Homestead shopping center on Saturday evening. Video later posted online showed the incident.

In the video, originally posted on a community Instagram page, a security guard can be seen telling another man to “drop his weapon” as he points his own gun towards the man.  The man can be heard saying he wants to get into his vehicle, as he appears to attempt to open the door. Then, another person appears from behind and shoots the man dead.

Miami-Dade Police closed much of the parking lot, located at 2980 NE 8th street, as they investigated.  A white SUV could be seen with a blood stain on the driver’s side door and bullet holes.

According to Miami-Dade police, the man shot dead had already fired shots in the parking lot before the video starts recording.

The off-duty police officer who killed the man is a 30 year veteran of the police force.

The shots caused panic in the nearby Publix, where customers barricaded themselves inside a break room.  Some ran out the back, attempting to cross a canal, according to witnesses.

“It was chaotic, everybody running, even trying to cross into the canal to get away from what we thought was happening inside,” said Janet Kaufman.

Witnesses say they saw the man shot receiving chest compressions. He was later transported to the hospital, but died.