3 Arrested, One Suspect Wounded After Shootout With Police

MIAMI GARDENS, FL — Three men were arrested after opening fire on two undercover Miami-Dade County police detectives, who returned fire and wounded one of the suspects in an exchange of "several gunshots" early Thursday morning.

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Arrested were 23-year-old Christopher Goa of the 2900 block of NW 51 Terrace in Miami, 26-year-old Demitrius Walker of the 20700 block of NW 17 Avenue in Miami and 25-year-old Wently Phenelon, whose address was not available.

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Charges were still pending Thursday afternoon.

"There was a shootout, an exchange of gunfire between two of our plain-clothes detectives and a subject," Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez told a television news crew at the scene.

Police said one of the suspects suffered a gunshot wound to the torso and was taken to a local hospital by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue personnel. No police officers were injured.

"At approximately 12:20 a.m., the Northside District detectives were in the area of NW 175th Street and NW 32nd Avenue, following up leads in another shooting incident, when they observed a collision between two vehicles," according to Detective Robin Pinkard of the Miami-Dade Police Department.

"The detectives approached and attempted to make contact with the parties involved. One of the vehicles, a gray Chevrolet Impala, with three occupants fled as the detectives approached," Pinkard said. "The detectives canvassed the area and located the vehicle at NW 172nd Terrace and NW 29th Place. Two black males exited the Impala and opened fire at the detectives where they returned fire."

Pinkard said that one of the suspects then fled in the Impala. "A description of the vehicle was issued over police radio, and the Impala was located at NW 169th Street and NW 27th Avenue, where the driver was taken into custody," she added.

Detective Marjorie Eloi said that "several gunshots were fired" in the exchange. The unmarked white Dodge Charger driven by detectives could be seen with the back windshield blown out.

The incident is being investigated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) under Miami-Dade County policy for officer-involved shootings.

Christopher Goa photo courtesy of Miami-Dade Police Department