Sep 13, 2007 10:02 pm US/Eastern
Cop Killer Manhunt: A Case Of Stolen Identity
CUTLER BAY (CBS4) ―
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This is the final description police have given of the suspect: Shawn Sherwin LaBeet.
MIAMI DADE POLICE DEPT.
After several hours of conducting a statewide manhunt for an alleged cop killer who also injured several officers Thursday morning, Miami-Dade Police announced they were searching for the wrong man all along.
Commander Linda O'Brien of Miami-Dade Police held a press conference shortly after 3:45 p.m. announcing that Shawn Sherwin LaBeet is the right name of the suspect they are looking for. The 25-year-old black male is 5'10" and has a record of criminal activity in Broward.
However, the first suspect name that had originally been released by investigators to local, and even national TV media, was Kevin Wehner. For hours, officers from multiple agencies throughout the state and the public had been put on the lookout for the wrong man.
The identity confusion plagued the investigation since the first moment, when police got the wrong picture of the suspect, who they claimed to be Wehner. From about 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. police had put out an erroneous picture that showed a black male with head gear that resembled a turban. After 2:30 p.m. police announced a correction and then said the suspect was still Kevin Wehner, but the picture was wrong.
Ultimately, after 3:45 p.m., they announced that the second picture they released was the right one, but the correct name was Shawn Sherwin LaBeet, not Wehner.
"We have been misled," said Commander O'Brien.
The police spokesperson said her department had been receiving information from "someone" who was working with them on the case who was wrong, but would not go into further detail.
"I reached [Wehner's] uncle in New York, who was baffled," said Luisa Yanez, of the Miami Herald.
The uncle also told Yanez that Wehner was in Jacksonville, Florida at the time the crime occurred, and he was about to call local police there to tell them what was going on.
"It's a case of stolen identity as far as his relatives are concerned," she said in an interview with
CBS4 News.
Investigators did confirm that Wehner's wallet had been stolen recently and it is possible that the LaBeet had been using Wehner's identity.
Fast Facts: Shawn Sherwin LaBeet
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