MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Cell phone video shows people running from an area where they were dining outside as a car speeds down Ocean Drive in the middle of the day on Sunday.
Terrified and running for safety, the owner of a restaurant said the vehicle tried to jump a curb where diners were eating, putting all of those customers in danger.
According to Miami Beach Police, motorcycle officers near South Pointe Drive and Alton Road saw a black Cadillac run a stop sign around 2:30 p.m.
The vehicle’s driver wouldn’t stop and fled, striking another officer’s motorcycle near 2nd Street and Ocean Drive.
As a police pursuit began, the driver hit several cars. When the driver was finally stopped at 6th Street and Washington Avenue, he was arrested. Three people in the car were detained.
Miami Beach Police said that the vehicle had been reported stolen in Miami-Dade County.
The owner of La Locanda Restaurant, Massimo Fortunato said he saw part of the chase, which was also caught on surveillance video.
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“This is the first time something so close happening in South Beach — is really scary. Thank God in the restaurant next door, six or seven policeman were having lunch and they came out and they were screaming, ‘Everyone leave.’ The guy he tried to go over the fence and ride on the sidewalk,” Fortunato said.
Washington Avenue was closed down for several hours from 5th to 7th Street as the scene was cleared.
Violent crime has been plaguing the entertainment district and Miami Beach officials and police have been cracking down.
On Jan. 31, the same area was closed down for hours after a triple shooting as investigators shut down the area between Sixth and Ninth Streets as detectives combed through evidence.
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