Cuban reggaeton star El Taiger remained in “very critical condition” after he was found shot in Miami. NBC6’s Sophia Hernandez reports
Cuban reggaeton star El Taiger remained in "very critical condition" at a Miami hospital Friday, a day after he was found shot inside an SUV, the city's police chief said.
Miami Police Chief Manuel Morales spoke with reporters Friday morning to give an update on the investigation into the singer's shooting.
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The singer, whose real name is José Manuel Carbajal Zaldívar, was brought to Jackson Memorial Hospital Thursday with a gunshot wound where he underwent surgery.
EL TAIGER SHOOTING
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Carlos Alfaro, a representative for the singer, said a surgeon told him that El Taiger suffered significant damage to his brain and remained connected to machines.
"He still remains in very critical condition," Morales said Friday.
The 37-year-old had been found unresponsive in the back of an SUV near Northwest 9th Avenue and 17th Street.
Though police have not said definitively if the wound was self-inflicted or fired at El Taiger, Miami Police spokesperson Mike Vega said Thursday that evidence shows the shooting did not happen inside the car.
Morales said investigators were still trying to determine how he was shot.
"We're not ruling any kind of situation out at this time," Morales said.
Morales said police know who the SUV belongs to but they're not ready to release that information.
“At this time we are not giving any further details because we don’t want to risk the integrity of the investigation," Morales said. "If we determine that the case was criminal in nature then we don't want to risk our ability to prosecute those who are responsible, bring them to justice and bring any type of justice to the family and the victim."
There were no suspects in custody, though police did interview a person of interest in the investigation, officials said Thursday.
Morales said it was still early into the investigation.
"We're confident that we'll be able to get to the bottom of this and solve this incident that's a tragic incident that has shaken our local South Florida community," he said.
