Miami cops arrest jailed suspect accused of fatally shooting homeless man in the head
Dervens Chery was in jail on unrelated charges when detectives looked through his belongings and found clothing they say matched what a man could be seen wearing on surveillance video when he shot and killed a homeless man in his sleep at a Miami park in late October.
Miami police investigators also say they have the 20-year-old on video with what appears to be a gun in his hand approaching Charles Herman Cole, 68, and shooting him before leaving the scene. On Saturday, police arrested Chery, charging the North Miami man with second-degree murder.
“Incredible work by our @MiamiPD Homicide Unit detectives - their diligent work and relentless pursuit of the truth resulted in the arrest of this ruthless murderer - your work makes @CityofMiami safer for all!” Police Chief Manny Morales tweeted Monday.
Around 6 p.m. Oct. 28, police said first responders arrived at Moore Park, 765 NW 36th St., in Allapattah after being notified of a shooting, police said. Upon arrival, officers say they found an unresponsive Cole with multiple gunshot wounds to the head. He died at the scene, police said.
READ MORE: Miami detectives look for ‘person of interest’ in deadly shooting of homeless man
According to a police report, a ShotSpotter alerted authorities of a shooting moments after Chery was seen on a nearby surveillance camera with what appeared to be a gun. He was later seen running away from the scene, detectives added.
On Nov. 29th, detectives served a search warrant at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami-Dade County for Chery’s personal belongings. Authorities note they found a black PUMA shirt, gold necklace, gold bracelet and black shoes. According to detectives, those were the same items worn by the man who killed Cole.
From the correctional facility, Chery was sent for further investigation to the Miami Police Department headquarters, where he was ultimately arrested early Saturday morning.
So, why was Chery already in jail?
Authorities didn’t specify why Chery had already been in jail when Miami police took him into custody, but county jail records show he was behind bars on pending charges of third-degree grand theft of a vehicle, burglary of an occupied structure and petit theft.
The arresting agency wasn’t immediately known, but it wasn’t Miami police, spokeswoman Officer Kiara Delva told the Miami Herald.
