A man arrested after allegedly starting a historic fire and shooting an employee at a Miami apartment complex has been identified as a resident of the building and a convicted felon.
Juan Francisco Figueroa, 73, is facing attempted felony murder, arson and firearms charges in Monday's blaze at the Temple Court Apartments, according to arrest reports.
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After his arrest, Figueroa allegedly told detectives "he expected to be in prison for the rest of his life," the reports said.
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Figueroa was booked into Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami-Dade County early Tuesday, records showed. He later appeared before a judge, who ordered him held without bond.
Arrest reports for Figueroa state that police responding to a fire at the Temple Court apartments at 431 Northwest 3rd Street found 30-year-old Feder Biotte suffering from a gunshot wound in front of the building.
Two residents were at the scene when officers arrived, and they described what they saw.
One witness said he heard the gunshots from inside his apartment, and when he went outside, saw the victim laid out on the first floor of the building.
“Mr. Biotte stated ‘307, the one from 307’ in Spanish, as [the] witness attempted to provide first aid,” arrest reports detail. One of the men, but it’s unclear who, also said he saw an explosion after hearing the gunshots.
The second witness said he heard loud noises as he was walking down a stairwell, and when he came out, he saw a man run past him and exit the building. The running man was again described as “the resident of apartment #307,” police said.
Police from the tactical robbery unit started searching for the suspect and his car, a 2008 maroon Honda, the arrest report states. They found the suspect vehicle at around 1:45 p.m. Monday.
Just after 3 p.m., officers saw Figueroa walking nearby. He got into his car and police followed until they stopped him at Northwest 2nd Avenue and 28th Street, police said.
Officers handcuffed the suspect, who allegedly carried a revolver and ammunition in his pockets.
When detectives attempted to interview Figueroa hours later, he allegedly spoke over them and said "he knew what he had done and expected to be in prison for the rest of his life," arrest reports state.
Figueroa is a convicted felon, authorities said. In 1992 he was found guilty of second-degree attempted murder and two counts of aggravated assault.
It is still unclear how or why Figueroa started the fire and shot Biotte, a maintenance technician at the apartment building who, according to family, has a 9-year-old son in Haiti.
Biotte remained hospitalized and was expected to undergo more surgery on Wednesday, family members said.
The blaze at Temple Court displaced 43 people on Monday morning. Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said 126 firefighters fought the flames for around 8 hours, a historic response for the city's fire rescue department.
The fire displaced more than three dozen residents of the apartment building, who spent Monday night at a nearby park before they were taken to a hotel in Doral on Tuesday.
The Miami Fire Investigation Unit, Miami Police Department and State Fire Marshal's office are investigating.
"Firefighters have not been able to go inside the building to actually investigate how this fire started, so that's going to take some days," Miami Police spokesman Freddie Cruz said.
Editor's note (June 11, 2024 at 12:48 p.m. EST): Authorities initially said in arrest reports that Figueroa was found guilty in 1992 of second-degree murder. Court records show the charge was for second-degree attempted murder.
