Thomas had been in town vacationing with two other NYPD detectives, one of whom had a wife celebrating a birthday. The group spent Friday evening at Mansions. Early Saturday, Thomas escorted the group to another hotel blocks from where he was staying at the 1233 Lofts.
As he returned to his boutique hotel and walked through a courtyard to his room, the men followed him and tried to rob him.
Thomas ran a few feet and hid behind a nearby tree and drew his firearm, exchanging shots with the men before they fled wounded and empty handed, police said.
Responding Miami Beach officers found Thomas “bleeding profusely on the floor and…unconscious.”
Later that day, while Miami Beach police were still at the scene of the shooting, a break in the investigation came.A police officer called to say a suspicious gunshot victim had arrived at the Plantation Hospital around 9 or 10 a.m. seeking treatment and was scheduled to be transferred to Broward General Hospital.
The victim turned out to be Mustafa Lee, 28, who was later identified by Thomas in a photo line-up. Lee had been wounded in the leg and lower extremities.
The other suspect, Francisco Henriquez, 35, was grazed in the ribs and DNA evidence left at the scene helped to identify him, Hernandez said.
Henriquez is charged with attempted felony murder and is being held in a Miami-Dade County Jail, while Lee is also charged with attempted felony murder and is being held in a Broward County Jail medical ward.
Meanwhile, Thomas is conscious and will be receiving skin graft surgery at a later date. The two other NYPD officers whom he was with have returned home.His family says they’re thankful the tough detective survived.
“He’s the backbone of our family,’’ Brandon Thomas, 23, said. “He’s everything to us.”
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