FLORIDA CITY, Fla. — A 34-year-old man is facing a second-degree attempted murder charge after police say a dispute at an abandoned Florida City apartment escalated into gunfire Sunday night, leaving another man wounded.
Officers with the Florida City Police Department said they responded just after 10 p.m. to the area of Northwest 12th Street and Northwest Fifth Avenue after reports of a man who had been shot.
Police said they found the victim lying on the ground with gunshot wounds to his chest and hand. They said emergency responders provided aid at the scene before transporting him to Jackson South Medical Center for treatment.
According to an arrest report, investigators recovered two .40-caliber spent casings near the location of the shooting near the 400 block of Northwest 12th Street.
Detectives later learned that the suspect, Mendez Nerette, who the victim knew as “Zoe,” had traveled to Doral and contacted police there, stating he wanted to speak with investigators about the incident and turning over a gun he allegedly used in the shooting.
Police said Nerette waived his Miranda rights and gave a statement to detectives describing a confrontation that began at an abandoned apartment where he said he was gathering belongings.
Nerette claimed a man confronted him at a back door, accused him of breaking into a car, and struck him in the head with a baseball bat after telling him “you broke into my car and stole my stuff,” according to the report.
Police said Nerette told investigators that after fleeing and later returning to retrieve his belongings, he encountered the same man again, and the confrontation escalated a second time.
Nerette told officers he then fired two shots, striking the victim before running from the area, the report states.
Police said the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office was notified of the case.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Nerette was being held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. He was also ordered to have no contact with the victim.
Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.
