Murder Suspects Apprehended After Police Chase Ends On Busy Miami Street
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – A police chase in Miami Beach came to an abrupt end in the City of Miami Monday afternoon with the capture of two men wanted for murder, investigators say.
It all started around 5 p.m. when Miami-Dade police was in pursuit of a white BMW through the streets of Miami Beach.
The BMW got on the MacArthur Causeway and then State Road 836 before getting off the highway in Miami.
It was finally stopped at the intersection of Northwest 27th Avenue and 20th Street.
There were four people in the vehicle, two of whom were arrested, Brandon Lee and Krishon Hedge.
According to US Marshals Assistant Chief Manny Puri, Lee and Hedge are suspects in a homicide that happened in Queens, New York earlier this month.
It was determined that the other two people in the car with them had nothing to do with the New York case and were let go.
Lee is out on parole out of New York state and Hedge is on probation in Florida.
"They are high level gang members in New York," Puri told CBS 4 News.
Puri said the Miami office of the Marshals Service got a tip Monday from New York about Lee and Hedge being in South Florida.
He said Marshals started surveillance, followed the men, called in reinforcements and officers tried to pull them over.
"They attempted to stop the vehicle and that's when the chase ensued," Puri said.
The chase unfolded live on CBS 4 News as the driver of a white BMW raced through intersections, drove on the wrong side of the street and drove on the shoulder and curbs all with police in pursuit. The chase lasted for miles during rush hour with a police chopper following from above until Lee and Hedge arrived at NW 27 Avenue and NW 20 Street, where they ran into heavy traffic.
"The vehicle took off at a high rate of speed," Puri said. "Thank God it was rush hour and after that long chase that long chase boxed them and they had nowhere to go."
The Marshal's would not disclose details about the murder in New York, only saying that getting these men locked up means our community is now a bit safer.
"These are two violent individuals that we were lucky to take off the street with no further harm being done and no one was injured in the chase," Puri said.
The Marshals office says these men might also have been involved in a hit and run crash with an off-duty Miami firefighter a few days ago. The two men are expected to go before a Miami judge sometime on Tuesday.
