The men are being charged with endangering Miami-Dade streets through illegal drag racing events
While car racing is a booming industry with lots of fans worldwide, taking these vents on public highways is a dangerous, punishable crime. In response to community concerns about drag racing, police in Miami-Dade County have issued over 200 fines and made over 20 arrests, local authorities reported on Wednesday. Authorities in Miami-Dade County have also arrested three individuals on multiple offenses related to unlawful drag racing.
Here's more on who was arrested and what they did:
About the arrests
Miami-Dade resident Michael D. Trillo (20) was detained on Tuesday for allegedly helping with organizing drag racing on a freeway. Jose Alfredo Martinez Jr. (31) and Eric Gotay (31) were also arrested by Miami-Dade police on multiple charges. The three men attended car shows where they participated in risky activities, including drag racing, sliding, donuts, drifting, and burnouts.
Martinez would use Telegram group messages to organize dangerous street races.
He faces forty charges of enabling drag racing on public roads. The MDPD stated the arrests were the result of a six-month investigation.
What did the culprits do?
Miami-Dade Police Department's Homeland Security Bureau started looking into the street racing on August 27. According to the arrest report, Gotay was responsible for planning and executing a series of street takeovers and drifting events. He admitted to authorities that he was the mastermind behind several online groups that planned street takeovers and drifting events.
According to the police, when Gotay shared an address in a group chat, cars would arrive at the place within minutes. Gotay would tell people to use a megaphone loudspeaker or send a message in the group chat so that law enforcement wouldn't be able to reach those locations. Police said these events have resulted in several shootings, fatalities, and vehicular manslaughters around the county, in addition to street racing.
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