A strange situation unfolded in Miami Beach, Florida, that ended in a way no one could have expected. It started with a call to 911 about a man walking on the Venetian Causeway who might have had a gun. But what happened next turned into a chaotic scene, leading to one police officer accidentally shooting another.
The incident happened on March 2, just before 12:30 p.m., when Miami Beach Police Officer Shenaqua Stringer arrived on the scene. She spotted the man, who was reportedly behaving suspiciously, and noticed him reaching into his right pocket. Thinking he might pull out a weapon, Stringer drew her gun and moved in to approach him.
While Stringer was trying to handle the situation, Officer Fabio Bolanos arrived in his patrol car from the opposite direction. He rushed to help her as she struggled to take the man to the ground. Stringer, who was holding her gun, accidentally fired a shot that hit Bolanos in the right calf.
In the body camera footage obtained by media, you can hear the aftermath of the accidental shooting. Bolanos is clearly in pain, moaning as blood pools around him. Meanwhile, the man who had been the focus of the 911 call is lying face down on the ground, confused and yelling, “Why’d you do that? Ain’t nobody do nothing. You messed up his leg. He’s bleeding a lot.” At one point, he even shouts in frustration that blood is dripping on him.
As the officers scramble to control the situation, Bolanos repeatedly calls for a tourniquet to stop the bleeding. Stringer stays focused, trying to manage the chaos until help arrives. Eventually, other officers show up, apply the tourniquet to Bolanos’ leg, and get him into the back of a police car to rush him to the hospital.
On the way to the Ryder Trauma Center, Bolanos makes a quick call to his wife. “I got shot in the leg,” he tells her calmly. “I’m OK, though. They’re taking me to the hospital. I’m OK. Alright, babe? I love you.”
At the hospital, Bolanos received treatment for his injury. Thankfully, he made a full recovery and is now back on the job. However, the incident has left him considering a lawsuit against the City of Miami Beach.
Back at the scene of the incident, officers didn’t find a gun on the man who had sparked the initial 911 call. Instead, they found he was holding a metallic lighter. It turned out the man was going through a mental health crisis, and he wasn’t charged for the incident.
As for Officer Stringer, she was reassigned to a different part of the police department after the shooting, and an internal affairs investigation into the incident is still ongoing. The situation serves as a reminder of just how unpredictable police work can be, even when officers are trying to do their best to protect the community.
