HIALEAH, Fla. – A 36-year-old Miami man appeared in court Monday to face charges stemming from injuries a Hialeah police officer suffered from being dragged by a stolen motorcycle the man was driving. On Tuesday, he’ll have to appear before yet another judge.
Roberto Ortiz Reynoso didn’t only commit the crime around 4 a.m. on Sunday, May 14, but has a lengthy rap sheet and was out on bond for a felony.
According to police Ortiz Reynoso was driving a 2006 white Suzuki motorcycle traveling on a sidewalk approaching East 49th Street around 4 a.m. Sunday, May 14.
When a Hialeah police officer attempted to pull him over, Ortiz Reynoso tried to flee. That’s when the uniformed officer grabbed the motorcycle rider by his shoulder. According to a police report, Ortiz Reynoso accelerated the bike, dragging the officer and crashing him into a marked police unit.
Police said Ortiz Reynoso then abandoned the motorcycle before running away.
A perimeter was set up and, using a K-9 officer, Ortiz Reynoso was arrested in the area of East 49th Street, between Fourth and Fifth Avenues, in Hialeah, police said.
The officer, identified by the Hialeah Police Union as Officer Delgado III, was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital.
Hialeah Fraternal Order of Police shared a photo of Delgado to social media of the officer at the hospital. They said he had surgery to repair fractures and torn ligaments to his knee.
Appearing before a bond court judge Monday with the aid of a Spanish translator, Ortiz Reynoso heard the charges he is now facing — third-degree grand theft and fleeing and eluding a police officer.
He can add those charges to what court records show is an extensive past criminal record. Records show he was out on a felony bond for a case of grand theft of a vehicle and possession of burglary tools, and another case involving a driver’s license violation.
Court records show Miami-Dade police officers arrested Ortiz for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon in 2021 and petit theft and grand theft in 2018, but prosecutors dropped both cases.
Hialeah Mayor Esteban Bovo shared a statement with Local 10 News about the work of Delgado. “Like all of the brave men and women who wear the uniform, Officer Delgado III put the safety of the community before his own well-being.”
He also wished him well in his recovery.
A judge sent the bond for Ortiz at $30,000 but because he was already on probation from a previous arrest he will have to appear in court on Tuesday in front of a different judge.