Two suspects arrested, charged with Miami-Dade murder of 7-year-old Alana Washington

Miami-Dade homicide detectives on Wednesday arrested two men accused of the July murder of 7-year-old Alana Washington, who was killed during a drive-by shooting in Brownsville.

Antonio Robinson, 22, and Jarvis Baker-Flanders, 23, were taken into custody on Wednesday morning, questioned and later charged with the murder, officials told the Miami Herald. Both confessed to their roles in the drive-by shooting, multiple law-enforcement sources told the Herald.

Robinson was booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on Wednesday night. Baker-Flanders was arrested in Georgia and was being held Wednesday night at a jail in Lowndes County to await extradition to South Florida, records show.

Details of the evidence against Robinson and Baker-Flanders were not immediately available on Wednesday night.

Alana was shot on the night of July 25 along with a 1-year-old relative and two adults in a drive-by shooting outside a home on the 2900 block of Northwest 51st Street. Alana was shot in the head, and was removed from life support two days later at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

Against the backdrop of yet another child killed by gunfire, Miami-Dade community leaders held rallies, including a “Justice for Alana” gathering in August. A $55,000 reward was offered for information leading to the arrest in the case.

Investigators believe that men inside a passing car targeted an adult at the home, not the children.

Also injured in the shooting was a 1-year-old infant named Alto. He was shot and wounded in the thigh. Also shot were Cynthia Bloom, 23, and Demetriel Rice, 24.

“Alana was only 7 years old, getting out of a car. My grandson was only 1 year old and he is still holding on,” the girl’s mother, Shanlavie Drayton told reporters after her daughter died. “I’m just asking if you guys see something, know something, say something, but mostly pray. Prayer, counseling because we all know prayer changes things.”

The Miami-Dade police department could not immediately comment on Wednesday. Authorities have not disclosed a possible motive for the shooting.

Both men have previous brushes with the law.

Baker-Flanders, 23, served more than a year in Florida state prison for a carjacking conviction in Miami-Dade County. He was released in 2018, records show.

Robinson, 22, was arrested for resisting arrest without violence, obstruction and disorderly conduct in Miami-Dade two years ago, records show. The charges were later dropped.

Miami Herald staff writer Charles Rabin contributed to this report.

This story was originally published September 9, 2020 at 2:19 PM.