Police: Region Superintendent Of Schools Arrested Over Incident With Gun
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – A police investigation revealed the Region Superintendent for the South Region office of Miami-Dade Schools, Dr. Alexis Martinez, got involved in an incident with a gun and ended up under arrest.
It all happened at a home on SW 94th Place on February 7th, according to investigators.
Neighbors said they heard a gunshot and screaming. "It was loud and everyone came out of their homes to see what happened," said Angel Losa. Losa said his wife heard the shot and he came home a short time later as police were investigating. "She just heard the loud noise and when he heard the loud noise she looked," said Losa. "It was a bunch of commotion."
According to police reports, a man at the home accidentally fired his gun. It was a .40 caliber handgun.
When police arrived they said Dr. Martinez was the one who approached officers and confronted them despite being told to not to interfere or he would be arrested.
Police said the gun did not belong to Martinez, but he allegedly told police he hid the firearm used in the incident inside the house, but forgot where he put the firearm.
Police added, he continued to interfere, wouldn't keep his hands out of his pockets and refused to say where he hid the gun. The firearm was later discovered under a living room sofa cushion, detectives stated.
Martinez lives several miles away from the home where the incident happened. No one came to the door at the house when CBS4 reporter Maggie Newland knocked on the door and his lawyer had no comment about the arrest. Court records show Martinez entered a not guilty plea to a felony charge of tampering with evidence and a misdemeanor charge of resisting an officer without violence.
Neighbors who saw the commotion at the home never guessed the man arrested was a high ranking school administrator."Not what you expect," said Losa. "I'm surprised to hear that, it's amazing."
John Schuster, the Administrative Director of Public Relations for Miami-Dade Schools released a statement: "Dr. Alexis Martinez, a Miami-Dade County Public Schools regional administrator, self-reported an arrest to the school district, as required by School Board policy. It involved a personal matter that was not school-related. Following school district procedures, Dr. Martinez has been reassigned to another office pending the results of a preliminary inquiry."
