[ad_1]
The brother of a 21-year-old student shot and killed in Miami amid a weekend of Spring Break chaos has paid tribute to his sibling, describing him as a dedicated scholar and a ‘warrior’.
Jordan Idahosa was shot at 10:40pm on Friday night in the South Beach neighborhood of the city – one of two people killed during the wild weekend of student debauchery.
A second person was shot just over 24 hours later, dying at 3am on Sunday in a second shooting, four blocks away from where Idahosa was killed.
The suspected gunmen have been arrested in both shootings.
Idahosa was with his friends on Ocean Drive and 7th Street when the incident occurred.
Jordan Idahosa, 21, was shot and killed on Friday night in Miami’s South Beach neighborhood
Javon Johnson, a friend of Idahosa’s, told WALB: ‘My friend had called me to see where I was at, and I turned around for like 10 seconds.
‘After that, all you heard was gunshots.
‘I really didn’t know who it was. I couldn’t see anything.’
Footage shows horrified diners at a restaurant looking on as at least six gunshots were fired. They scramble inside, while Idahosa’s body is left lying in the road on the famed Art Deco street.
Police are on the scene within seconds.
‘On Friday at 10:41 p.m., officers heard the sound of gunshots near 7 Street and Ocean Drive and found two males with gunshot wounds at 7 Street. Both males were transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Unit,’ tweeted Miami PD.
‘One of the males died at the hospital, and the other is listed in critical condition. Officers detained one male and recovered three firearms at the scene. Detectives are investigating what led to the shooting incident.’
The police then updated their report to say the suspect was in custody, and four firearms – not three – had been seized.
‘UPDATE: Miami Beach Police have one male in custody, who is cooperating fully with the investigation, and were able to recover four firearms from the scene. MBPD has confirmed that this was an isolated incident.’
Idahosa’s brother Sammy said he was ‘a warrior’
Idahosa, who was studying in Georgia, is seen with a friend
Idahosa was a member of the International Christian Church, and worshipped in Denver, Colorado before moving back to Georgia around 2021
Idahosa’s brother Sammy told WALB his sibling was ‘a special guy’.
‘He went from being homeschooled to being a scholar,’ said Sammy.
‘There’s millions and millions of memories of me and Jordan.
‘We grew up three years apart, and we practically did everything together. He’s like my twin brother.’
He said his death had hit the family hard.
‘Jordan was the first Idahosa to depart from us. It doesn’t feel real,’ said Sammy.
‘I just want people to know my brother was a soldier. My brother was a warrior and still is in spirit.’
Idahosa was a student at South Georgia State College and was studying an entry-level program at Valdosta State, a college in the small town of Valdosta, on the Georgia-Florida border 70 miles north east of Tallahassee.
‘We are deeply saddened to learn of Mr Jordan Idahosa’s passing,’ Valdosa State said on Instagram.
‘Jordan, we’ll miss you, but we’ll always remember the times we had together.’
Idahosa had previously lived in Denver, Colorado, where he was active in the Denver International Christian Church.
The pastor, Brian Carr, told DailyMail.com he believed Idahosa moved back to Georgia around 2021, before Carr arrived.
An emergency curfew was imposed on Miami Beach on Sunday night, but on Monday the city voted against extending it.
Miami Beach City Commission held an emergency meeting following the two fatal shootings and discussed the curfew for more than an hour.
They ultimately decided against extending the city manager’s full state of emergency, which would be from Thursday to Sunday.
‘These are very challenging moments,’ said Mayor Dan Gelber, speaking at the start of the meeting.
‘Very few cities have to deal with these issues the way that we have to deal with them.’
Sunday’s restriction was the third year in a row that city officials implemented a curfew.
Gelber earlier said he wanted to cancel Spring Break, arguing it brought too much unrest.
‘We haven’t asked for spring break in our city. We don’t want spring break in our city. It’s too rowdy, brings too much disorder and is simply too difficult to police,’ said Gelber.
The chaotic weekend saw partygoers jumping on a car, brawling in streets and trashing a slushie shop on the main drag.
The second murder was carried out on Ocean Drive and 11th Street, at 3am on Sunday.
Footage showed a man in a white t-shirt and white jeans appearing to shoot the victim at extremely close range.
Dontavious Polk, 24, from Fort Lauderdale, was arrested for the fatal shooting later on Sunday, and charged with first-degree murder and held overnight, according to an arrest report.
Dontavious Polk is seen allegedly shooting a man dead at point blank range on Ocean Drive early Sunday morning
Polk was arrested Sunday and held overnight on first degree murder charges for allegedly shooting a victim at point blank range on Ocean Drive
He was arrested after being chased and detained, with police allegedly recovering two weapons.
At least 70 guns have been confiscated in Miami Beach in the past three weeks.
Police said Polk was walking with three other men when he slowly approached the victim, removed a firearm from his waistline and fired at him several times.
The victim immediately fell to the ground and later died after being rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital.
Officials immediately instituted a curfew that began at midnight Monday and ran through 6am Monday morning.
Miami residents and business owners complained that this is the fourth year in a row they are battling curfews and rowdy-beyond-control crowds.
‘The Miami Beach brand has been damaged beyond recognition for the last decade,’ Mitch Novick, a local hotel owner, told the Fox & Friends hosts Monday morning.
‘As someone who’s been in the hotel business for over 30 years, my guests, who I’ve known the generations of their family, have told me in recent years they’re no longer coming back here.
‘They’re going to seek out alternative vacation destinations, but I’m optimistic that things will change,’ he said.
Gelber issued a statement in response to the violent weekend saying rising crowd numbers had left police overpowered.
Mayor of Miami Beach Dan Gelber wants to cancel Spring Break: ‘We haven’t asked for spring break in our city. We don’t want spring break in our city. It’s too rowdy, brings too much disorder and is simply too difficult to police,’ he said after a violent weekend
‘The volume of people in our city, the unruly nature of too many, and the presence of guns has created a peril that cannot go unchecked,’ he said.
‘It is clear that even an unprecedented police presence could not prevent these incidents from occurring.
‘While most may come here to enjoy the amenities of Miami Beach, the overwhelming volume of visitors, a few that come with bad intentions in the presence of guns creates a wholly intolerable situation.’
During a Monday morning appearance on America’s Newsroom, Gelber said that his residential city is not equipped to handle ‘young, rambunctious partygoers looking for a rite of passage.’
‘It doesn’t work for us,’ he said. ‘We cannot balance public safety with business.’
Partyers were not deterred by the first fatal shooting on Friday night and kept the party going Saturday night and into Sunday morning, when another fatal shooting occurred
The bloody weekend prompted city officials to call a curfew that began at midnight on Monday and lasted until 6am
Crowds walk up and down Ocean Drive at night on Saturday March 18, 2023 during Spring Break in Miami Beach
In previous years, the mayor has also instituted a curfew in addition to banning certain types of alcohol sales
Novick said he was unimpressed by the mayor’s response.
‘He’s been saying the same thing for since he’s been in office,’ he said.
‘I believe him, but he’s been ineffective in making any changes, and a lot of it has to do with campaign donations.
‘His colleagues and himself have taken so much money from the nightlife industry, which again, is the reason why nothing has changed.
‘Why does the city continue to provide a carnival-like circus on the street with multiple stages blasting music?
‘The city embraces this spring break atmosphere, and I’ve been appearing before the mayor and commission for about a decade now, telling them not to throw millions upon millions of taxpayer dollars at the police, but to address the incompatible and problematic open air entertainment zoning that is found along Ocean Drive that just a handful of businesses exploit with their own blasting music and dance performances on the public right of way.’
Video footage of the weekend revelry shows members of rowdy crowds pounding and jumping on cars that are attempting to drive through Ocean Drive.
Police presences appeared overwhelmed by the sheer number of out-of-control party-goers, who seemed to be looking for a fight.
Separate footage showed scantily clad women and several men trashing a local slushie shop on the main street by the beach, as the lone shop employee begged them to stop.
Last year, Miami Beach banned some nighttime alcohol sales in South Beach for three straight nights as an emergency measure, in addition to instituting a curfew.
The ban applied to sales of alcohol for ‘off-premises consumption’ at businesses like liquor stores and drugstores after 6pm.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk