Miami Beach

Police: Pedestrian struck, killed on Miami Beach

 
 

Joao Paulo Escudero Mauro
Joao Paulo Escudero Mauro
Miami-Dade Corrections
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A 45-year-old man was killed Thursday on Miami Beach when a car slammed into him as he tried to put away his bicycle, according to police.

The driver who struck him, Joao Paulo Escudero Mauro, 20, of Aventura, was charged with DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide, cocaine possession and carrying a driver’s license with a fake birthday on it, according to an arrest affidavit. He was held in a Miami-Dade County jail Thursday night.

The crash happened a few minutes before 1:30 a.m. in the 3900 block of Collins Avenue. Escudero Mauro was northbound in a silver Mercedes Benz SUV. Police believe he was going more than 60 miles per hour in an area where the speed limit is 30, the affidavit said. At the same time, Russell Knudson, of Miami-Dade, was at the west curb, trying to load his bike into a gold Toyota through the left rear door, the affidavit said.

The Mercedes drove onto the sidewalk, hitting the Toyota and Knudson, who died at the scene.

The driver told police he had swerved to avoid a vehicle stopped ahead of him, the affidavit said. He admitted to drinking, the affidavit said, and carried a license altered to make him look 21.

The cocaine charges were because police said they a small bag of cocaine was found near the spot where Escudero Mauro was given a sobriety test. He also had a “white powdery substance” in his left nostril, the affidavit said.

Escudero Mauro’s lawyer, Howard Srebnick, said Thursday night his client never used cocaine.

“The blood test will prove he did not use cocaine,” Srebnick said. “The white powder on his nostrils was the white powder from the airbag deploying in his face.”

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