A recent incident at a Redland plant nursery resulted in the deaths of two men after a confrontation escalated to gunfire. Eric Jose Garcia, a 35-year-old local, has been arrested on charges of second-degree murder for the deaths of Juan Miguel Menjivar, 53, and Jose Wilian Galdamez Menjivar, 40. According to the arrest report, Garcia admitted to the shooting, explaining that the victims were blocking the road with their truck and refused to move it, leading to the incident.
According to WSVN, Garcia claimed the incident began after a dispute over the victims' truck, which was parked behind his and would not be moved upon his request. Garcia, armed, chased the victims and shot them because they were too close to his truck and smashed a beer bottle against the hood of his truck. Miami-Dade Police responded to the scene near 240th Street and Loveland Drive late Sunday afternoon following the altercation.
In a report by NBC Miami, after an initial exchange where he requested the truck's removal, the confrontation escalated rapidly when Garcia perceived a threat. "The defendant felt that both victims were too close to his driver's side door which was ajar," he confessed. "Therefore, he stated that [he] began shooting at both victims because he wanted to execute them both ensuring that they were dead."
According to police, even as the victims tried to escape, Garcia pursued them and continued firing his gun. A witness confirmed this account. After the shootings, Garcia called the authorities himself and was arrested and booked into jail, where he is being held without bond. As of the latest reports, there is no available attorney information for Garcia.
