Woman arrested in downtown Miami murder; police say it happened in back seat of Uber

MPD: Single gunshot killed Gladys Yvette Borcela, 28

Natalia Harrell is accused of shooting and killing a woman in the back of a black Cadillac Escalade, seen at left (WPLG/MDCR)

MIAMI – A Coconut Grove woman faces a second-degree murder charge after police accused her of shooting and killing a woman in downtown Miami Saturday.

Police said the slaying took place in the back seat of a packed Uber.

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According to an arrest warrant, 24-year-old Natalia Harrell, 28-year-old Gladys Yvette Borcela, and five others boarded a 2020 Cadillac Escalade at around 2:15 a.m. after hailing an Uber ride at Northwest Second Avenue and Northwest 10th Street.

Police said surveillance video taken from inside the vehicle shows Harrell and Borcela getting into a verbal argument that quickly turned physical. Investigators said that the video shows Harrell reaching into her purse, pulling out a gun and firing a single shot at Borcela, wounding her.

The video showed the driver stopping the SUV in the area of Southeast First Avenue and First Street and everyone but Borcela getting out, the report states. The six passengers ran from the scene.

First responders later took Borcela to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead.

Witness: At Overtown venue, suspect angry that victim was drinking and dancing

According to a witness, Harrell and a group of friends were at the Clevelander Hotel and Bar on South Beach, when some of the men in the group asked a woman in the group if she had any friends that would like to join them, the report states.

The woman showed the men a social media account of Borcela’s and she agreed to meet up with them at The Urban at 1000 NW Second Ave.

After meeting up at the Overtown venue, Harrell was reportedly upset with the fact that Borcela began to “drink and dance,” texting the witness to “get her girl under control,” the report states.

After the venue shut down, the group ordered the Uber. Soon after Harrell and Borcela sat down in the third row, the two began to bicker and call each other names, the witness states.

The witness told police that Harrell then ended up in the front of the Uber facing the other passengers, and kept shouting, “You don’t want this; you don’t want me to go in my purse,” the report states.

Harrell went into her purse, taking out a black gun and firing the single shot that killed Borcela, authorities said.

Police were still searching for Harrell when they wrote the arrest warrant Sunday; they booked her into jail early Tuesday morning.

She was set to face a judge Tuesday and was being held without bond.


About the Author

Chris Gothner joined the Local 10 News team in 2022 as a Digital Journalist.

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