Related: School Invaders don’t take hostages
By Macollvie Jean-Francois and Elizabeth Baier
The Sun-Sentinel
Miami Gardens, Fla. — A male teacher was shot in the torso as he ate his lunch outside Miami Carol City High School shortly before noon on Tuesday, school officials said.
The teacher, who has not been identified, was standing with another teacher across the street from the high school at 3422 NW 187 Street in Miami Gardens, when they were approached in what authorities believe was an attempted robbery, Miami Dade County Public School spokesman John Schuster said.
The two men fled into the nearby 187 St. Apartments complex. The development was on lockdown through the first half of Tuesday afternoon, leaving dozens of residents to gather in a lot across 37 Avenue, watching as Special Response Team members of the Miami-Dade police department searched the grounds. Residents were not allowed in or out of the complex.
Tips that came in from the Crimestoppers hotline helped police nab several suspects, said Miami-Dade Police lt. Nancy Perez. She would not confirm how many suspects were in custody or whether others were at large.
Carol City High, Middle and Elementary School are all on lockdown, Schuster said. Authorities have not identified the two suspects, he said.
“At this time, students are in a very safe place because they are inside the school,” Schuster said. “Parents should not be concerned. All police are on the scene.”
School officials have not yet determined whether the three schools will be releasing students at their regular time, officials said. Miami Carol City Elementary releases at 2 p.m.; Miami Carol City High releases at 3 p.m.; and Miami Carol City Middle releases at 3:45 p.m.
The victim was alert and talking as he was taken to Ryder Trauma Center, police and fire rescue officials said. His injuries were not life threatening.
Parents began arriving at the school shortly after news of the incident spread.
‘It’s crazy when you hear about gunshots, said Marion Cooney, 54, of Miami Gardens, whose son Necheon is a senior at the high school. Necheon called his father from inside the school on his cell phone to tell him what was happening. “Just being a teacher is rough enough,” Cooney said.
LaTronya Beckham, 36, was at her job in Hollywood when she received a similar call from her daughter, Theranika, a freshman. “Mom, what’s going on?” Beckham quoted her daughter as saying. “Our school is surrounded by police. There are ambulances and helicopters everywhere.”
Police told worried parents that no students were in danger and that the lockdown was for the students’ protection.
Copyright 2007 Sun-Sentinel