Would-be helpers face gunfire

LAUDERHILL — People who approached a violent crash to offer help scattered when the suspected driver started yelling profanities, pulled a handgun from his waistband and fired it several times, Lauderhill police said.

Police initially said the man began shooting rounds at the people rendering aid, but the details of what happened Wednesday night near the Lauderhill Sports Park became murky after investigators listened to varying witness accounts.

“There is no known motive for this shooting or why the vehicle crashed, although excessive speed appears to be a factor,” Maj. Rick Rocco said.

A white Buick sedan struck a tree about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday in the median along the 7500 block of West Oakland Park Boulevard, Rocco said.

“In the ensuing chaos after Lauderhill police investigate the crash scene on Thursday. the crash, several people ran up to the car to see if they could help,” Rocco said.

They found the man outside the car near the driver’s side, Rocco said. He “became irate” and started yelling while the crowd tried to help him, Rocco said.

“He then fired the handgun, fortunately not striking anyone,” Rocco said.

None of the witnesses who tried to help said they felt threatened by the man, Rocco said. “This means that no one who spoke with the police following up on the case can, or will, say that the male was intentionally trying to injure or kill them,” Rocco said.

Witnesses told investigators they heard between one and four shots fired, then the man ran away. In the passenger seat of the sedan, witnesses saw a pregnant woman with a gash across her forehead.

The woman did not cooperate at first, but then spoke with investigators and insisted she had been driving the car, Rocco said.

Before the shooting, the woman had been trying to get the man to calm down, Rocco said.

She would not confirm to police if the man had been in the car with her and said she didn’t know him, Rocco said.

The car did not belong to the couple, and had not been reported stolen. The owner said she knew the woman in the car, Rocco said.

“[The owner] does not want anything to do with the matter other than getting her car back,” Rocco said.

Police with dogs and the helicopter from the Broward Sheriff’s Office searched for the driver, but the man wasn’t found. The man wears his hair in long dreadlocks and is armed with a small black and silver handgun, Rocco said.

Lauderhill Fire-Rescue took the pregnant woman to Broward Health Medical Center, officials said.

The case remains under investigation.