Exclusive: Parents Search For Answers After Son Shot & Killed In Truck
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MIAMI (CBSMiami)---The grieving parents of 23-year-old Dylan Page are searching for answers three months after their son was shot and killed while behind the wheel of his blue Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck.
His death spawned a Facebook page entitiled "Justice for Dylan" with posts that include such comments as, "If he did it, why isn't he in jail" and "Dylan's heart was huge. He always picked the perfect card. Who would have thought a coward's bullet would hit that very heart."
The parents also said they are trying to get more information from Miami-Dade Police who said they are "working the case" and that this is an "active investigation."
"We are destroyed. We are destroyed," said Dylan's mother Debbie Page in an exclusive interview with CBS4's Peter D'Oench. "We have been sentenced to death for life. That is how we feel. The whole community is devastated. Our whole family is devastated. My 14-year-old son will never recover. We will never recover from this."
"Dylan was a free diver, a trophy winning fisherman who held a commercial license for fishing and a lobster fishing license and he was a year and half away from getting his degree in commercial engineering. He was also a security guard for Miami-Dade in Homestead. He had lots of friends," she said.
"Honestly Dylan was our hero," she said. "From day one, I always knew he would be somebody. He cared so much about everyone and everything. He was never in trouble and was always moving forward."
"He was my hero and Dylan and I spent a lot of time together, fishing, a lot of things since he was 2-years old," said Mike Page. "This was horrible. It is still unbelievable. This is very hard, very, very hard. We were very close. I just don't understand this and can't believe this happened."
Debbie and Mike Page told D'Oench that their son died on the night of October 25, 2014 after three shots were fired at his pickup truck outside a house near S.W. 284thSt. and S.W. 160th Court.
Debbie Page showed CBS4 the pickup truck that is now sitting outside her home.
"There is one bullet hole in the grill and another in the hood," she said. "As three shots were fired, he must have let off the gas to go. He was shot through the driver's side window. The bullet entered underneath his arm toward his back. He must have been ducking."
Debbie Page said her attorney has told her and her husband to expect that the man who shot her son will claim he fired in self defense.
"All we know is that our son went to visit a neighbor at a home near our house and there was some sort of argument and then shots were fired," she said.
"Even if there was an argument we are not even sure what happened because we really don't know because we've had little communication with police," she said.
"One of my biggest concerns is why would the truck be released after my son was shot and killed in the truck," she said. "The truck was released within hours. The next thing I know is that my 14-year-old son found a bullet in the motor with his flashlight that was not found by investigators. It would mean a lot to me if this case could be solved.My son was always doing things to help other people and be a productive part of this world."
"Somebody needs to be held accountable," she said. "They know the address and who the shooter is."
"We're just upset because there's been no real communication," said Mike Page. "Let us
know. We drive by the scene every day. We are reminded what happened to our son."
D'Oench stopped by the home where the shooting occurred and noticed that it had a number of surveillance cameras. D'Oench was unable to knock on the front door as the house was surrounded by a gate and no one would come outside.
Miami-Dade Police said they could not talk about the case on camera but said there was an "active investigation" and they were "working this case." They said detectives did not want to jeopardize the case by releasing too much information publicly.
In a statement, they said "Detectives are investigating this incident along with the State Attorney's Office. No arrests have been made at this point."
Debbie Page said she had heard that a veteran Prosecutor with the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office was looking into this case.
Police said at this point, detectives were not asking for help from the public. But they did say that anyone with information should call them or Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS (8477).
