Police: Man in custody after shooting 2 in workplace dispute near MIA

Argument started by co-workers over ‘advancements’ made to one of the victim’s sisters, according to police report

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – An employee of an airline cargo and mail handling service near the Miami International Airport has been identified by Miami-Dade Police as the person who pulled out a gun and shot two co-workers.

The argument, according to a police report, began over accusations of “harassing advancements” made to one of the victim’s sisters.

Jackson Etienne, 31, of North Miami, was taken into custody after the shooting Thursday at Cargo Force, which is located at 2360 NW 66th Ave., on the site of the Miami-Dade County Aviation Department.

An arrest affidavit lays out the details of what transpired. On Thursday at 7:15 p.m., Miami-Dade Police said that Etienne along with another man were working at Cargo Force when two other employees walked into the business.

It had been a days-long dispute over Etienne making advancements to one of the men’s sisters, according to investigators. On Thursday, the verbal fight escalated and the men went outside near the loading docks of the business. Etienne and another co-worker were allegedly punched several times. Investigators said Etienne then ran, taking cover under a parked cargo trailer. As the men approached him, investigators say, Etienne took a black handgun from a satchel he had across his chest and began to shoot, hitting one man in the lower abdomen and the other in both thighs, according to the report. Etienne then ran back inside the business, according to police.

Relatives who work at Cargo Force took the injured 18-year-old man and the 23-year-old man to the hospital before police officers arrived, said Detective Alvaro Zabaleta, a spokesman for MDPD.

Detectives were investigating a shooting on Thursday night just west of the Miami International Airport. (Copyright 2021 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.)

After the incident, outside of the Miami VA Medical Center, Miami police officers had surrounded a silver Nissan that was riddled with bullets. The vehicle that was in the parking lot, at 1201 NW 16th St., was related to the shooting near MIA, Miami police said.

The injured men were transferred from the Miami VA Medical Center to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center, and Miami-Dade officers impounded the Nissan as evidence.

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