October 2023

Officer of the Month

Officer Zephyr Jean

The North Miami Police Department’s “Officer of the Month” for October 2023 is Officer Zephyr Jean. Officer Jean is assigned to the Uniform Patrol Section - Midnight Shift. He is being recognized for his outstanding performance for the following incident:

On October 7th, 2023, at approximately 7:15 AM, officers were dispatched to a robbery in the area of NE 7 Ave and NE 141 Street. Upon arrival, the juvenile victim approached the officers in shock and advised that he had just been threatened with bodily harm and robbed by an unknown male wearing a black ski mask and hoodie. The victim then pointed to the direction the suspect fled, indicating that the trail was fresh, and it was highly probably that the suspect was still in the area. 

Knowing that time was of the essence, Officer Jean, without hesitation, began his search for the suspect to prevent his escape. Officer Jean tactfully performed an area canvas, which quickly paid dividends. Officer Jean located a male matching the description a couple of streets over, strolling down the block with no sense of urgency. As Officer Jean approached, he and the male locked eyes, at which time the male, now a suspect, realized he had been made. The suspect went into fight-or-flight mode and immediately chose to flee on foot to escape. Officer Jean quickly jumped into action, exited his police vehicle, and pursued the suspect on foot. The suspect could not escape, as Officer Jean was too fast and determined to catch the fleeing felon. The suspect was quickly apprehended and detained for a showup. While on scene, a Miami-Dade School Board officer working at North Miami Senior High School, advised that he was with a second juvenile victim who was also robbed in the same area by a male matching the description of the suspect detained. 

North Miami Police officers responded to the high school to meet with the second victim. The victim stated that he was robbed by a male matching the suspect’s description detained by Officer Jean. The suspect approached the victim with one hand inside his hoodie pocket, implying he had a firearm. He frisked the victim for valuables and demanded the victim’s cellphone. Fearing for his life, the victim complied. The suspect ordered the victim to walk away fast and not look back. 

The officers moved to the next phase of their investigation and coordinated a showup. Both victims positively identified the detainee as the person who had robbed them. The suspect was subsequently arrested to be brought to justice, but it wasn’t so simple. During the investigation, the suspect again attempted to evade officers by providing a false identity. The officers were initially convinced of the identification information provided until after a closer inspection of his physical features. The suspect was adamant his identity was true, but the officers were not easily fooled. The officers used Rapid ID technology, an instant identity verification service, on the suspect, and it was evident why he had assumed the identity of another to provide to police. The suspect was indeed “on the run“from law enforcement and was wanted for attempted homicide and possession of a firearm. 

Officer Zephyr Jean demonstrated the utmost commitment to service in protecting the community from a violent felon who targeted and violently robbed children as they walked to school. This criminal showed a propensity to prey on the innocent and weak, and officers needed to act diligently to stop his progression of robbing school children. Officer Jean’s bravery, swift actions, and zeal to serve and protect reinforce the public’s trust by reducing the fear of crime in the community. Officer Jean followed the Department’s Motto of “Making a Positive Impact.”