FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A South Florida police officer will remain behind bars to await his trial after he was charged with the attempted murder of a fellow officer.
Kristopher Bieger, 30, a Lauderhill Police officer, appeared before a judge at the Broward County Courthouse, Monday morning and denied bond. Police arrested him for allegedly firing nearly 10 rounds at another Lauderhill officer, Saturday Night, in an attempt to kill her.
Surveillance video rolled as authorities swept through a Davie restaurant before apprehending him, Saturday night, soon after the shooting. According to investigators, the suspect went for a slice of pizza after firing several shots at officer Britanny Skinner. Had it not been for the officer’s bulletproof vest, she could have been injured or killed, police said.
After the shooting, police said, Bieger drove his pickup truck 16 miles to a Davie pizza shop and ordered two slices. Surveillance video shows Bieger in a red shirt, talking on the phone, at the front of the restaurant. “He came in, ordered two slices of pizza, and then he went outside and on the phone,” said a restaurant worker. “A little bit later, police called and said, ‘Lock the door, run in the back, stay away from the windows.’”
Someone used a cell phone camera to record police and SWAT entering the restaurant to apprehend Bieger. “Kill the lights for me,” one officer orders.
The SWAT team arrived through a back door and took over the kitchen at the pizza shop. They ordered the lights turned off and got into position. With guns drawn, they rushed through the restaurant to the front where Bieger was pacing back and forth while on the phone.
Skinner was in her police car and in uniform at a plaza along Oakland Park Boulevard when people heard shots. In bond court, Judge John Hurley read from a report that described what happened, “Drove up in his pickup truck and fired approximately, apparently, 10 rounds from a handgun at her police vehicle, while she was in the vehicle.”
“We heard gunshots,” said witness Donato Dileo. “At first, we thought it was somebody hitting the glass. Next thing you know we see the truck driving off by the side.”
Police said that was Bieger’s truck speeding away. One of the bullets went through officer Skinner’s seat and into her bulletproof vest, but she was not injured. According to investigators, the two worked the same shift, dated and had recently broke up.
Alberto Milian, the suspect’s attorney, said, “My client, we’ve entered a plea of not guilty. We’re going to conduct discovery, and we’re gonna move forward with this case, and it will be settled in court.”
In court, the judge warned Bieger not to make any contact with Skinner. His charges include attempted first degree premeditated murder with a firearm and discharging a firearm from a vehicle.
Republished with permission from WSVN