By james art Miami Police Chief Manuel A. Morales confirmed Wednesday that Damian Valdes-Galoso, who was wanted as a “person of interest” in the case of Cuban reggaeton artist Jose Manuel Carbajal, El Tiger, is responsible for the artist’s murder.
At a press conference, the official said that Valdes Galoso was the man responsible for the shot that killed the popular musician and was arrested in New York after being on the run since October 3.
He also said the detainee would be transferred to Miami-Dade County in the coming hours to face trial.
“It was Damien who did the shooting; he is responsible and no one else is involved,” Morales said, adding that the crime took place in the city of Hialeah.
He said he has video that will be released later and expressed his gratitude to the community of Miami and Hialeah for their cooperation in solving this crime that shocked the Cuban and artistic community in Cuba and South Florida.
“We are working with the state prosecutors, especially Prosecutor Catherine Fernandez, to secure the charges that will be filed and ensure that Damian pays for his crime,” he stressed.
“In our opinion, there is no doubt that he is the one who shot; there are video recordings that will serve as evidence and will be in the hands of the prosecution,” commented Morales.
He also explained that the arrest was made on Tuesday thanks to the efforts of the police in Miami, whose officers flew to the Big Apple to support their colleagues from New York in the apprehension.
He also dismissed rumors that El Tiger died of torture or as a result of some sort of settling of scores, as has been speculated: “We have no evidence that he was tortured; he was killed,” he explained.
Finally, he highlighted the work of the Miami police, who were able to capture the fugitive in less than a month. “Our agents solve 97 percent of the crimes in the state; that’s an accomplishment,” he said.
The Cuban reggaeton artist was found in the back of a Mercedes Benz truck with a gunshot wound to the head on October 3 outside Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami and was pronounced dead seven days later on October 10.
Police said Valdez-Galoso is a person of interest in the case and are offering $5,000 for any information leading to his whereabouts.
“We’ve always known that,” Morales said, noting that sometimes terminology can complicate solving a case, which is why it hasn’t been confirmed so far that the person in question is the only suspect.
El Taiger is one of the most significant figures in what is known as cubatón, a genre that mixes reggaeton with Cuban rhythms. In just over 15 years, he achieved numerous hits – such as La Historia, Southwest, El Punto, La Cura… – and made a contribution to the genre that established him as an icon of contemporary Cuban music.
He was known by his followers as “Big Ty”, “The Beast, The Machine, The Animal” or simply “The Beauty of My Country”.
Dozens of activists on the island have revealed in recent days that amid the widespread crisis, the musician has supported countless social causes from a place of anonymity.