Thread: Illegal Killed on Job in Miami

Building maintenance worker shot dead helping police serve eviction notice at South Beach waterfront condo.

By JENNIFER LEBOVICH, LUISA YANEZ AND MELISSA SANCHEZ
jlebovich@MiamiHerald.com
Friends who rushed to the scene of a fatal shooting at a Miami Beach condominium said the victim was a 60-year-old man who had started working at the building on Monday.

The friends identified victim as Alberto Gomez, who came from Colombia about 40 years ago and had spent much of the time working in construction.

Police did not release the victim's name saying they had to notify his relatives.

Gomez was shot dead at about 11 a.m. as he accompanied Miami-Dade police officers and movers serving eviction papers to a unit owner on the second floor of apartments.

``For somebody to do this, they'd have to be some kind of demon,'' said Nancy Cortes, a friend of Gomez's who rushed to the building when she heard the news.

The scene unfolded in the building at 465 Ocean Drive, a waterfront complex on South Beach.

According to police, the victim had gone with officers to serve eviction papers on the owner of a unit.

When no one answered the door, the worker began changing the locks. The armed tenant suddenly opened the door and fatally wounded the worker, who died at the scene. One officer returned fire, wounding the condo owner, who was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital, said Lt. Rosanna Cordero-Stutz, with Miami-Dade police.

Two movers who were also at the door to remove the owner's personal property ran for cover and were not injured.

The name of the tenant who opened fire has not been released.

The police officer was apparently injured in the melee that ensued. His injuries did not appear to be serious.

Gomez could not return to his native Colombia because of immigration problems, said Cortes' husband, Felix Valera.

``It's been 40 years since he'd seen his family. He couldn't go because he lacked papers,'' said his friend Felix Valera, who he's known for the past two decades.Gomez lived alone and spent much of his time at Valera's house, often coming over to play dominoes.

Monday afternoon, the area around the building remains surrounded by police officers and cars with lights flashing. Traffic in the area has been rerouted as police investigate.

The shooting caused a ruckus in the popular Fifth Street area of South Beach during a tourists-filled week.

Basia Simpson, 21, of Chicago, was sitting at a a nearby deli when she suddenly heard about eight to nine shots, saw people jumping to safety from the building and witnessed a police officer running toward the building with a high-powered weapon.

Miami Herald staffer David Smiley contributed to this report.



Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/11/22/1 ... z163FoY4k8

It's been 40 years since he'd seen his family. He couldn't go because he lacked papers,''

Evidently he was here during the 1986 amnesty - so whose fault is it that he lacked papers? I always wonder when I hear someone whine about being here 30 to 50 years and not being legal. Seems to me it wasn't important when they had the chance to become legal.

Originally Posted by MontereySherry

It's been 40 years since he'd seen his family. He couldn't go because he lacked papers,''

Evidently he was here during the 1986 amnesty - so whose fault is it that he lacked papers? I always wonder when I hear someone whine about being here 30 to 50 years and not being legal. Seems to me it wasn't important when they had the chance to become legal.

I agree with you but would like to add the fact that he may have committed a crime and fled here, has a criminal record back home, or was involved in some political activity back there that would not allow him to get a greencard.