Man suspected of killing wife died after exchanging gunfire with cop, Miami police say
WEDNESDAY MORNING UPDATE: Police identified the woman as 62-year-old Julia Maylen Hernandez-Lopez and her husband as 70-year-old Lazaro Vargas-Yera.
A Miami police officer exchanged gunfire with an armed man suspected of shooting his wife in Little Havana on Monday afternoon, police said.
The Vargas-Yera and Hernandez-Lopez were pronounced dead at their home near Southwest 18th Avenue and Fifth Street. The shootings happened just after 3 p.m.
Acting Miami Police Chief Manny Morales, in a media conference held nearby, stressed that it was too early in the investigation to determine if the officer’s bullet ended Vargas-Yera’s life or if the husband had shot himself.
The unnamed officer escaped injury. He had been responding to a call about a domestic disturbance from a man who reported that he had shot someone. Morales said the officer, after entering the home, found an injured Hernandez-Lopez. As he walked further into the home, Morales said, the officer reported that “he was confronted by an elderly male armed with a firearm.”
After an exchange of gunfire, the chief added that the officer retreated. When other police officers arrived, they found the Vargas-Yera dead. Efforts to resuscitate Hernandez-Lopez failed.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will investigate the shooting.
Miami Herald Staff Write Carli Teproff contributed to this report.
This story was originally published February 14, 2022 at 4:36 PM.
