Trio charged in wild four-day crime binge. Video of beer theft solved case, Miami police say
Miami police have arrested two men and a woman who they say went on a wild four-day robbery and abduction binge during which they held a cellphone for ransom, abducted two people for their credit cards, did a hit-and-run on a bicyclist and also wheeled eight cases of beer out of a Navarro supermarket without paying.
That last caper was recorded on video by Navarro employees who chased them into the parking lot and helped lead police to the trio.
The suspects — one nicknamed Gringo and the other Tata — used the same vehicle throughout the spree, police said, and didn’t make much of an attempt to hide their identities.
“Police think there are probably more victims,” said Miami Police Spokesman Michael Vega. “In both kidnapping cases, the people abducted seemed to be under the influence of alcohol.”
Police took the three into custody without incident last week. As of Thursday, all three remained in jail and it wasn’t clear if any had hired an attorney.
Jesus Carbonell, 51, nicknamed Tata, was charged with kidnapping, two counts of strong-armed robbery, impersonating a police officer, driving with a suspended license and leaving the scene of an accident with serious injury. His alleged partner Zdenek Jelen, 49, nicknamed Gringo, has been charged with kidnapping, aggravated battery and armed robbery with a firearm. Jennifer Montenegro, 33, also was charged with strong-armed robbery.
Miami Police say the felonious string of events began Oct. 26, when Carbonell and Montenegro spotted a man fixing a flat tire on Northwest Eighth Avenue and Flagler Street. Once the man accepted a ride in Carbonell’s late-model green Chevy Tahoe with faded paint, things took an unexpected turn. The victim told police they began arguing and when Carbonell drove past his home, Montenegro grabbed his cellphone from his pocket.
Scared, the victim said he jumped out of the vehicle’s window. But it didn’t deter Carbonell, the man told police, who drove up next to him, got out of the SUV and demanded money for the cellphone. The man said after handing over $40, he got his cellphone back and Carbonell left.
Two days later, police said, Carbonell, struck a guy on a bicycle outside a barbershop at 204 SW 12th Ave., while driving the same Chevy Tahoe. The man suffered a fractured leg. Carbonell, the man said, slowed down and took a look, then drove off. Later that day, according to Vega, Carbonell and Jelen walked into a supermarket at 3015 NW Seventh St., put eight cases of beer into a shopping cart and left the store without paying.
But as the two were trying to get away, Navarro supermarket employees followed them and recorded video of them putting the eight cases of beer — a variety of brands, Vega said — into the back of the SUV. Police released a video showing one of the employees taking video of the two men, then running up to the Tahoe and pulling away a T-shirt that was hiding the vehicle’s license plate. The cellphone footage captured the plate clearly. One of the men gets angry and pushes the blue shopping cart toward the woman recording them.
“That’s what helped us solve it,” said the police spokesman.
Then the next day, on Oct. 29, police said, Carbonell and Jelen were driving near Southwest 18th Avenue and Fourth Street and saw a man who had just left a party. Vega said the man was intoxicated. Police say Jelen got out of the SUV, pointed a pistol at the man and ordered him into the vehicle. The victim said the duo took his cellphone and threatened to kill him if he didn’t hand over credit cards and pin numbers.
Then, according to police, “they drove the victim around using the victim’s debit card in multiple locations in the city of Miami.” Apparently, Carbonell and Montenegro didn’t cover their faces and surveillance video captured “high quality footage” of the suspects and the vehicle. They eventually let the man go.
But, police said, Carbonell was back at it the very next day on Oct. 30. This time, police said, being even more aggressive when he blocked someone on a Flagler Street sidewalk with his vehicle, got out and yelled, “Stop, police, you are under arrest,” the victim told police.
The victim, for some reason, got into the SUV, where police say Carbonell and Montenegro forced him to lay down in the backseat before taking his cellphone, debit card and $60. Then they drove a few blocks and let the man go.
Fortunately, according to police, a witness having breakfast outside a cafe at a small strip mall witnessed the entire alleged false arrest. It also didn’t take police long to retrieve video from where the man was allegedly abducted and where he was dropped off. They said Carbonell’s faded green Chevy Tahoe is clearly visible in both instances.
This story was originally published November 10, 2022 at 11:52 AM.
