Homicide lieutenant who distracted a wanted Miami gunman named officer of the year
A Miami-Dade police officer who distracted a rifle-toting murder suspect enough for other officers to shoot and kill him, was chosen as law enforcement officer of the year by the Florida Sheriffs Association.
Lt. Benny Solis was named the award’s recipient Tuesday for his part in the May 2019 capture of Ronnie Angelos Churches, who had just been released from prison after a 10-year sentence and who was wanted in the shooting death of Robert Cardenas a day earlier in Opa-locka.
Churches, 45, was suspected of firing a bullet into the head of Cardenas, 44, as he sat in his car outside a pawnshop, his fiancée and her children seated beside him. A day later, police found Churches’ vehicle parked outside a home in Miami Gardens. Police said he got into the vehicle and refused repeated commands to pull over, before firing on officers.
Solis, a member of the department’s Homicide Street Violence Task Force, arrived at the scene after the shooting stopped. At that point, according to police, Churches was standing outside a home, still with the rifle in his hand. Solis then “flanked” Churches by jumping a fence and distracting him enough for other officers to fire their weapons and kill him.
Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo “Freddie” Ramirez called Solis courageous and said his quick action may have saved lives.
“His heroic and quick response resulted in the resolution of a highly dangerous situation,” Ramirez said.
Solis has been with the department 20 years. In a video released by the sheriff’s association, Solis said he gets the most satisfaction out of seeing a probe through to the end.
“The biggest excitement to me is the rush of getting an investigation, seeing it from the very beginning and seeing it through to the end,” he said.
This story was originally published July 28, 2020 at 12:32 PM.
