Jan 24, 2008 9:14 am US/Eastern
Suspect In Detective's Murder Has Court Appearance
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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Andrew James "Birdman" Rolle is charged in the murder of Miami Police Detective James Walker.
North Miami Beach police
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Police released this photograph of a weapon found on the scene of James Walker's murder
CBS
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This is the flyer distributed to police across South Florida regarding the arrest warrant for Andrew Rolle, the accused triggerman in the murder of Miam police detective James Walker.
CBS
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Miami Police officer James Walker, shot in North Miami in his unmarked car while off-duty.
Walker Family/CBS
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Attempted murder charges against Ricardo Ajuste, 21, have been dropped.
MIAMI POLICE DEPT./CBS
The man accused of murdering Miami Police Detective James Walker will appear in court on Thursday.
During his hearing, 20-year old Andrew Rolle will have an attorney officially assigned to his case.
Investigators believe Rolle had gone to an alley behind a North Miami Beach Apartment building on January 8th to shoot a man in a dispute over a gun. After shots were fired, Rolle spotted Walker in his white Taurus and believed it was a friend of his waiting in a similar car. Walker, who had just gotten off duty an hour before, had driven to the apartment building to visit his wife. Investigators say as Rolle got into Walker's car, he realized he had the wrong vehicle. Investigators said Walker did manage to unholster his Glock service weapon and fire one shot in self-defense but a Glock is simply no match against Rolle's AK-47 assault rifle which was found on the scene.
Police say Rolle had been arrested 4 days before Walker's murder on misdemeanor loitering and prowling charges but was released on $500 bail.
Originally, police suspected 21-year old Ricardo Ajuste, a known gang member, in Walker's murder. Ajuste described as a "major player" in North Miami Beach's "One Way Gang", was charged with two counts of attempted murder for allegedly shooting at a man and woman inside a black Impala in a fit of jealous rage. That shooting allegedly took place in the same North Miami Beach alley where detective Walker was found shot dead.
Hours after Rolle's arrest, Miami-Dade Assistant State Attorney Abbe Rifkin, the lead prosecutor in this case, said that Ajuste was no longer considered the shooter and was 'not culpable' in the case. All charges were dropped against him and he was released from jail.
Ajuste will be a witness for the state and represented by the public defender's office.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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