Crimewatch

SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE (CBS4) ― The robber demanded that Lomberto Echane hand over his money. He did. The bandit also wanted the gold chain from around Echane's neck. Echane gave it to him. That's when the man with the pistol shot him, twice in the stomach, without provocation.

Echane, a 35 year old husband and father was robbed and shot in front of his family in the driveway of their home at 12762 Southwest 250th Terrace. He has remained on a ventilator in intensive care since the robbery and shooting Sunday afternoon.

Echane's wife, Olga, who has remained at her husband's hospital bedside, spoke by phone Tuesday with CBS4 reporter Gary Nelson. "I was in the car with the kids and I heard the shots," Olga Echane said. "It was terrifying. The kids were screaming. I was afraid for my children and I covered them."

The victim's wife said she was so focused on protecting her children that she did not see everything that happened between her husband and the attacker.

But the family says before he lost consciousness, Echane related this account to a friend who rode with him in an ambulance to a waiting air-rescue helicopter: Echane was afraid that the gunman might kill his family in order to eliminate witnesses. Wounded, he wrestled with the robber for his gun. As the shooter struggled to break free, Echane held on to the man's gun with one hand and ripped the ski mask off his face with the other. He got a good look at the guy, and also "landed several licks" on the robber's face. As the men struggled for the weapon, Echane was shot two more times and collapsed in the street.

Witnesses told police the robber ran to a waiting getaway car, a light green mini-van with an accomplice at the wheel. Miami-Dade police released a blurry image of the van that they believe was used in the robbery. The photo was taken by a security camera. Police will not reveal where the security camera was located.

Echane, who works as a heavy equipment operator on road-building projects, came to the United States from Cuba seven years ago, relatives said. The family hopes his mother, who is still in Cuba, will be allowed to come to the United States to help him recover. "He needs to hear his mother's voice," said Echane's sister-in-law, Barbara Melgarejo. Family members were at the West Miami-Dade office of Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart Tuesday afternoon, trying to enlist his aid in getting a visa for the mother.

Echane's wife said her husband remains in very critical condition. "He is stable, but we don't know what will happen," she said. All four shots hit the man in the abdomen. Relatives say doctors had to remove large portions of his intestines in the effort to save him.

"He is a very hard working man," Olga Echane said. "He is devoted to me and his children. His family means everything to him."

Lomberto Echane had just returned with his family from a cell phone store near the Southland Mall when he was attacked. It was his wife's birthday. He gave her a new cell phone.

"This teaches me that you have to be aware, be alert all the time," Olga Echane said. "There are people who will kill you for anything."

She said her sons, Jose, who is almost three, and one-year-old Brian, remain shaken by the Sunday shooting. "The oldest keeps crying for his daddy," she said.

Police ask that citizens who might be able to help in the investigation call CrimeStoppers at 305-471-TIPS (8477).

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

CBS4.com Top Videos

• Police: Youth Minister Molested Teen
• Hallandale Cops Hunt For Armed Robber
• Woman Raped In Coconut Grove
• Michael Brewer Fundraiser Held Saturday
• Horses Are Back At Hialeah Park