Police have charged a man who they say killed two sisters and wounded two other people in a drive-by shooting in northwest Miami-Dade last month.
Drakar Lamar Smith, 20, was booked into jail Wednesday on one count of second-degree felony murder, one count of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted first-degree murder, records showed.
Police said Stephanie Telusme, 27, and her sister Joanna Telusme, 24, were visiting friends in the 6100 block of Northwest 20th Avenue when they were shot just fore 1 a.m. on April 14.
The sisters, who were from Broward County, were killed at the scene. The two other people who were injured were taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital Hospital in stable condition. They were identified as Robert Allen, 30, and Jennifer Charles, 24.
According to an arrest warrant, an officer heard the gunfire and responded to the area. The officer saw a car driving away and tried to stop it, but the four males inside stopped the car and fled on foot, the warrant said. Inside the car, police found two AK-47s and a semiautomatic pistol, the warrant said.
Police set up a perimeter and Smith was found a short time later hiding under a tarp in a backyard, the warrant said. Smith had gunshot residue on his hands, the warrant said.
"These two young women were innocent victims of the type of random violence my prosecutors and the Miami Dade Police Homicide Task Force are committed to ending," State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. "I am grateful that the collaboration between the State Attorney’s Northside Gun Initiative and the Miami-Dade Police Department Homicide Unit resulted in an arrest in this case. Though it will not bring back these two young sisters, it will bring the culprit to justice."
Smith was being held without bond Thursday, and attorney information wasn't available. Jail records showed he was on probation for check forgery and resisting an officer without violence.
"Senseless gun violence in Miami-Dade County will not be tolerated," Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez said in a statement. "I'm thankful that the combined efforts of our Task Force and the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office can assist in bringing those responsible for these tragic deaths to justice."
