The suspect in the murder of a ten-year old boy that occurred during the robbery of a North Miami nail salon has been charged with a second murder - the shooting death of a man at a Miami-Dade hotel.
The nail salon robbery, however, was committed by two subjects. One has been arrested, the other has not.
Nevertheless, police have arrested a second suspect in the hotel shooting. Police are investigating to see whether this person - who allegedly committed the murder with an accomplice who has been charged in the death of the ten-year old boy at the nail salon - may be the second subject they are looking for in the nail salon robbery.
When investigators are searching for a suspect and they believe they know the identity of that suspect, they will put a photo lineup together to present to eyewitnesses. A standard photo lineup in Florida consists of six photographs of people with similar physical traits. This may include similar hair styles, similar skin color, and similar facial features. The photos are usually obtained from the state’s driver’s license database or previous booking photos. Only one of the six photos will contain the photo of the suspect. This photo lineup is to prevent a suggestive lineup, where police will only put one photo in the lineup that matches the description given. If the alleged victim IDs the suspect, an arrest can be made.
There were several witnesses to the nail salon robbery. However, the subjects are accused of wearing masks. Unless the co-defendant who is already in custody provides a statement (which is unlikely since he is represented by an attorney), police will have to rely upon physical evidence, such as fingerprints that may have been left behind and DNA swabs.
Police can obtain a court order to obtain physical evidence standards from a suspect, such as fingerprint and DNA samples.
Eric Matheny is a criminal defense attorney representing clients in Miami and Broward.