A Cocaine Cowboy's Last Ride
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"Something Had To Be Done"
Bob Pilgrim
The January 3, 1982 edition of the Miami Herald's "TROPIC" magazine said
it all,
"Miguel Miranda was a man of monstrous violence. For eight years he lived
ostentatiously, as a federal fugitive in South Florida. He rode in Lear
jets and
limousines, sold cocaine by the suitcasefull, killed animals and drank
their
blood. He vowed to die fighting, like Dillinger. He was not particularly
clever
or even careful. He didn't have to be. The authorities that were supposed
to be
hunting him never really tried. Those who could have arrested him didn't.
Ten
murders later he finally got their attention."
It was well past midnight on another balmy April night in Miami. Frank
White and
his team were engaged in an extended 19-hour surveillance that led them to
Neon
Leon's restaurant. The agents and police were waiting for DEA fugitive,
Cuban
expatriate Miguel Miranda and his brother Humberto to emerge so they could
finally rid the country of this drug kingpin. The plan was to close in as
both
of the Miranda's arrived at the doors of Miranda's Cadillac. It was a
simple
operation, but was complicated by the presence of prostitutes plying their
trade
and who were very adept at spotting police activity. Because of the high
likelihood of compromise by the comely courtesans, the surveillance had to
be
established from a distance making positive identification difficult.
A couple of men left the restaurant and put two boxes in the Cadillac's
trunk.
Frank placed no particular significance on this since he knew the
Miranda's
frequently took food home from Neon Leon's. One of the males got into the
car
and the other disappeared down an alley. After a short wait, the vehicle's
headlights came on and the Cadillac began to move slowly forward, but
lurched to
a stop, reversed and backed up to its original location. Frank did not
initiate
the take down, because he did not know who was in the car.
The driver proceeded down 58th Court and disappeared from Frank's visual
when he
made a right hand turn. Team radios came alive with a positive make of two
males
in cowboy hats and the driver was Miguel. Frank initiated his contingency
plan
for a mobile encounter. DEA cars and trucks with a marked police unit
rolled and
took up cut off and blocking positions. Miguel, sensing the steel envelope
that
was beginning to box him in threw the Caddy into reverse, floored it and
smashed
into the follow car. "Watch out," was heard over the noisy melee as Miguel
accelerated forward, attempted to run an agent over and rammed the lead
vehicle,
pu****ng it out of his way. "Crack-crack," multiple shots emanated from the
darkened Cadillac as Humberto laid down covering fire with his pistol. Big
mistake. Frank reacted by blowing away his face with one well placed round
from
his forty-five.
Breaking out of the cordon, the Cadillac hopped a curb, took out a parking
meter
and sped off toward a gas station. Frank and Barry, former CIA and vet of
the
clandestine wars in Laos and Vietnam took off in hot pursuit. Two
competent
gunmen had Miguel's rapidly dimini****ng number. And it was about time:
Miranda
was a federal fugitive and avoided incarceration by retreating to his
fortified
estate. It was surrounded by high fencing, equipped with electronic
security and
protected by mounted body-guards, vicious dogs and numerous automatic
weapons,
further augmented with hand grenades. He was wanted for or suspected of
dozens
of killings. A practitioner of Santeria and believed to be a babalawos, or
high
priest, many of his murders were merely for personal entertainment. His
favorite
assassination weapons were ssilenced .22s and .380s. But in one case, he
ended
the life of a young model by injecting an over dose of cocaine directly
into her
jugular vein. He even involved his ! next-door neighbor Miami Dolphin
Mercury
Morris, by forcing one of his "Coke Heads" to call him numerous times and
beg
him for $6,000 to pay off his debt to Miranda. On his final call he asked
Morris
to tell his wife that "he lover her and to take care of the kids, she'll
never
see me again." He reappeared days later, stuffed in a plastic garbage bag
and
floating in a 55-gallon drum in Biscayne Bay.
Although he had outstanding warrants from three agencies and was known to
be
Miami's most notorious serial killer the "Jackals," which is Frank's
sarcastic
sobriquet for the local prosecutors, either failed to act, frustrated
investigations into his activities or consistently dropped charges against
him.
Therefore, it came as no surprise to Frank when evidence uncovered at the
estate
revealed that one of the Jackal's lived in the addict's compound. The boss
Jackal, who rose to national prominence in the Clinton administration
never
responded to the serious issues raised by the evidence.
Careening off the side of the gas station, the Cadillac bounced onto the
South
Dixie Highway and screamed back toward Neon Leon;s, which Miranda had
extorted a
controlling interest in and turned into a refuge for criminals. Seeking
the
protection of his fellow travelers he frantically drove through Miami
streets,
hopped another curb, demolished a street sign and propelled a newspaper
kiosk
and large mailbox into the road. As Miranda's wild ride rebounded off the
curb
Frank and Barry's "G-ride" became entangled with the two-ton missile and
Barry
cranked off at Miguel. This violent odyssey had to stop-now. Frank leapt
from
his vehicle and ended the rampage with two rounds into Miguel's head. Amid
the
carnage, passenger Humberto was still alive and came out of the car
screaming in
Spanish, "You don't want me-It's my brother you want."
Law enforcement personnel on the street and many citizens were elated, but
the
boss Jackal was not. She referred to Miranda as an "allegedly dangerous
subject"
and characterized Frank's shooting as a "Negligent, haphazard, reckless
and
slipshod apprehension." Her bombastic attack was designed to conceal her
culpability and negligence, which kept Miranda in circulation and
permitted him
to continue his killing spree.
There are very few checks and balances at the highest levels of law
enforcement
and things can be swept under the blue rug unless a vigilant press and
ethical
and courageous police professionals are willing to confront internal
corruption.
While checking on the progress of ballistics tests, the lab officer took
Frank
aside and told him in hushed tones that he had been ordered to stop
conducting
further ballistic tests on all 22 confiscated firearms including Miguel's
suppressed High Standard .22 caliber pistol. The officer confided, "You
killed
the biggest mass murderer in Florida's history. They fear having any more
bodies
tied to Miguel's guns. Who knows how many more victims fell victim to his
guns."
Shooting Recapitulation
Frank fired a total of five rounds. The range to both Miranda's was about
15 to
20 feet. Humberto had two handguns and when he fired Frank responded with
one
..45 caliber FMJ round while standing next to his vehicle's left front
wheel
well. There was enough street illumination and ambient light to see his
sights.
To take Humberto out of action Frank had to "thread the needle" and fire
past
Miguel's head through the open driver's side window. When it was Miguel's
turn,
Frank fired four rounds through the Caddy's rear window and hit him twice
in the
head. The first pair was touched off while seated in the DEA vehicle
through the
"V" created by the open door and body. Frank knew he scored on Humberto,
because
the Commander's muzzle flash confirmed his sight picture after he broke
the
shot. It was the same with Miguel and as soon as the flash showed that his
sights were realigned he pressed the trigger.
LESSONS LEARNED:
Agents were on duty for 19 hours. Not good, but it does happen. If
available,
plan for and schedule enough manpower for relief. Also, train under
demanding
conditions that will test and strengthen you physical and mental
endurance.
Like Waco, it was inadvisable to storm Miranda's fortified compound. The
advantage is generally with the defender, particularly if you have lost
the
element of surprise. However, mobile operations are very difficult to
control.
If blocking vehicles are to be used, make sure they are heavy enough to be
effective against the targeted conveyance and choke points can be sealed
off.
Establish vehicle-to-vehicle contact, so that no maneuver room is
available.
People are often least alert when they are returning to their sanctuary.
Many
successful ambushes have been executed outside the wire of a position
against a
returning patrol that is tired and thinking about a cold one as soon as
they
pass through the lines. Consider setting up a car stop in the vicinity of
the
subject's residence and have surveillance shadow him and alert the arrest
team
when the subject is headed in their direction. Maintain perimeter security
in
the event the subject's back up force arrives on the scene.
Whenever you plan consider any options that take away the subject's
ability to
make decisions, such as fighting or fleeing. The futility of resistance
should
be immediately apparent.
Night sights are fine and lasers are better, but learn to use muzzle flash
as a
shooting aid.
During the lead up to WW2, the Germans repeated every day training
exercises at
night. Learn to make darkness your friend and become comfortable when
operating
in marginal light.
Always stack the odds in your favor. This includes firepower as well as
manpower. Each non-driving agent/officer passenger should have a shoulder
weapon.
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-- Otis Willie (Ret.)
Military News and Information Editor (http://www.13105320634.com)
The American War Library, Est. 1988 (http://www.amervets.com)
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