MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – A 37-year-old man was arrested Thursday after he pistol-whipped a man who dated his wife a year ago while the two were separated, but was continuing to meet up with her, authorities said.
Miami Beach police said the incident happened at the Bikini Hostel at 1245 West Avenue.
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Officers were called to the scene just after 5 p.m. Thursday in reference to a shooting, but when they arrived they didn’t find any victims suffering from gunshot wounds, however they found a man with a cut on his head who had been struck with a gun.
According to the suspect’s arrest report, Mario DeJesus Arias Perez had called his wife while he was on the way to the gym and asked her where she was at.
Police said Perez drove by the hostel and noticed that the victim’s vehicle was parked outside, so he took a picture of it and sent it to his wife.
The wife left the property before Perez arrived, but Perez confronted the victim in the lobby area and told him to stop coming near his wife, authorities said.
According to the arrest report, the man punched Perez in the face, at which time Perez pulled out a Glock 19 handgun from his waistband and pistol-whipped his wife’s lover.
As he struck the man with the gun, a round was discharged, traveling north through the lobby and striking the bathroom door’s frame and the bathtub, police said.
Authorities said the two men struggled for the gun and continued fighting each other until a witness intervened, separated the men and told them they were going to ruin their lives if they continued to fight.
Police said Perez then left the scene with his gun.
According to the report, Perez’s wife called him a short time later and told him to turn himself in at the police station.
As Perez turned his car around to head back to Miami Beach, he was pulled over on the MacArthur Causeway and detained, authorities said.
Police said he confessed to the incident and his gun was confiscated as evidence.
Perez faces charges of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and aggravated assault with a firearm.