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Suspect targets homeless in Miami, kills 2 and injures 2 others, say police

FILE - A City of Miami police officer talks with a homeless person, prior to a cleaning of the street, Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2021, in Miami. Florida’s homeless will be banned from sleeping in public spaces such as sidewalks and parks under a law signed Wednesday, March 20, 2024, by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)
Lynne Sladky/AP
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AP
FILE - A City of Miami police officer talks with a homeless person, prior to a cleaning of the street, Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2021, in Miami. Florida’s homeless will be banned from sleeping in public spaces such as sidewalks and parks under a law signed Wednesday, March 20, 2024, by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)

A man early Thursday attacked homeless individuals in downtown Miami, killing two people and injuring two others.

The names of the suspect — who was apprehended soon after the attack ؅— and the victims were not identified by law enforcement authorities because of the ongoing investigation, said Miami Police Chief Manny Morales during a press conference on Thursday afternoon.

Morales shared few details, except to say the suspect was 30 years, had minor criminal run-ins in New York and had appeared to specifically target the homeless in the area near First Avenue and Northwest Sixth Street. He allegedly used a "stick" to beat the victims.

“The officers on scene and the Miami Police Department are appalled at the display of unprovoked violence, and we will make sure that our investigators pay close attention so we can hold this individual accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” Morales told reporters at the news conference.

Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust Chair Ron Book called the violent attack “tragic” and “senseless.”

“The murder of at least two members of our unhoused community and the hospitalization of two others is tragic,” he said in a statement. “While we grieve the senseless loss of these lives, the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust remains committed and determined to get every person off the streets and into safe housing.”

He applauded Morales and the Miami Police Department investigators for the “swift” arrest of the attack suspect.

“Our deep appreciation to Miami Police Chief Manuel Morales and his team at the Miami Police Department for their swift apprehension of a suspect in this senseless set of murders and attacks on our community’s most vulnerable and for what we know will be an aggressive prosecution by State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle’s office.”

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