TAMPA, Fla. — Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez has been hospitalized after he "suffered a critical injury in the Tampa area," the Miami-Dade Police Department said in a statement early Monday.
The statement said Ramirez, 52, was "currently undergoing surgery."
— Miami-Dade Police (@MiamiDadePD) July 24, 2023
According to a report from the Miami Herald, citing sources, Ramirez shot himself after pulling over on a highway in the Tampa Bay area, where he had been attending a law enforcement conference.
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister later told NBC affiliate WTVJ that it appeared to be "a self-inflicted gunshot wound."
"We do know that he probably has a long road ahead, a lot of surgeries, but he is going to survive," Chronister said.
The Florida Highway Patrol and Florida Department of Law Enforcement were investigating the incident. Details were not immediately known.
Shortly before 8:30 a.m., the Miami-Dade Police Department said Ramirez was in "critical but stable condition."
— Miami-Dade Police (@MiamiDadePD) July 24, 2023
"We are asking everyone to continue to keep him and his family in your prayers during this difficult time," the statement added.
Ramirez has been employed by the Miami-Dade Police Department since 1995, rising through the ranks before becoming director in 2020.
