NORTH MIAMI, Fla. (WSVN) -- A gunman shot three people, including his girlfriend and a toddler, before turning the gun on himself Monday.
North Miami Police and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue units responded to the scene after shots were fired near Northeast 135th Street and Seventh Avenue, just after 5 p.m., Monday. The suspect, who police identified as 25-year-old Tavaris Fair, reportedly chased his girlfriend with a gun in an apartment complex.
North Miami Police Chief Stephen Johnson said the girlfriend lead Fair to an occupied apartment. "She was running for assistance, and she ran into the apartment. It looks like she was chased by the boyfriend," Johnson explained.
Fair then shot his girlfriend and two others, including 1-year-old Ayana Palmer, who was sitting on her aunt's lap when she was shot. "It could have went through her chest, and I could have lost my baby because this boy chose to don't care about nobody's life. He just took life in his own hands, and my daughter was the victim to this bad situation," said Charline Saloman, Ayana's mother. "Just pray for my daughter. That's all I want."
"An innocent baby was just playing, and she got caught in the crossfire," one woman said.
Fair reportedly even fired shots while rescue crews were on scene, and the wounded victims had to wait 30 minutes before they were taken out of the apartment and airlifted to Jackson Memorial Hospital. "Usually firefighters go into a fire, but we're usually not in the line of fire," Eric Baum of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue said. "We turned over chairs and tables to protect the patient, and we waited until as such time as we could get out."
Authorities evacuated residents from the apartment building as negotiators communicated with Fair. North Miami Senior High School, located nearby, was placed on a modified lock down for hours following the shooting. "I was upstairs in the classroom, and that's when I heard a whole bunch of gunshots," said Sandy Noel, a student. "I was scared. I wanted to go home, but we were on lockdown."
Some parents panicked and tried to communicate with children at the school and in nearby apartments that were blocked off when police set up a perimeter to search for the shooter. One parent, Mary Troddy, said, "At first, I was crying. I was upset. I was like, 'Is she involved in what had happened and everything?' I got in contact with her."
At around 9 p.m., police and SWAT Team members found Fair dead. Authorities believe the suspect shot himself before they could reach him.
Meanwhile, little Palmer suffered a gunshot wound to her liver and had to undergo surgery for her injuries. The three victims are listed in critical but stable condition and are expected to recover.
Those who know the gunman and his girlfriend said the incident was inevitable. The couple reportedly had a history of domestic violence. "They were having problems, they were still together, living together," said Pete Petterson. "I told him it was better off for you to just let her go."
(Copyright 2010 by Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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