Car Found, Search Continues For Hialeah Jewelry Store Robbers
HIALEAH (CBS4) – The getaway car has been recovered, but the search continues for four people involved in a Hialeah jewelry store robbery in which a worker was shot.
The white Bentley Continental was recovered late Tuesday night, with the robbery suspects nowhere to be found. Yet to be found: a second car. The car is a black Mercedes CLS550, with the tag 608 XJF.
The robbery happened just before 6 p.m. at the ABC Jewelry store on the 3500 block of West 18th Avenue. Hialeah police said one person stayed in a car outside while the three others stormed the store and disarmed the security guard.
"They ordered everyone to the ground at gunpoint so everyone was scared for their lives and they started smashing up showcases," said Hialeah Detective Carl Zogby.
At one point one of the robbers shot a clerk, Alfredo Betancourt, in the stomach; the bullet punctured his liver. Betancourt is the son-in-law of the jewelry store's owner.
Betancourt remains in the intensive care unit of Jackson Memorial Hospital Monday afternoon.
"You don't expect that to be happening at this time," said Aleberto Cruz, cousin to the shooting victim. "Right now, our concern is him."
Police said the three people involved in the robbery are "extremely dangerous," noting they shot Betancourt even though no one resisted.
"That's why we call it a hostile take over, a very, very dangerous situation God knows what they're capable of if they face resistance," said Zogby.
Monday evening, police surrounded a home in the area of 7th Avenue and 10th Street in Overtown based on a tip to Crime Stoppers, but no arrests were made.
Anyone with information is urged to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS.
