Police chase turns deadly after teen slams car into Florida City apartments, cops say

A 17-year-old died after losing control of the speeding car he was driving while trying to escape police Thursday afternoon in Florida City, according to law enforcement.

Detective Alvaro Zabaleta, a Miami-Dade police spokesman, said it began with a traffic stop by detectives at a gas station at Southwest 326th Street and Krome Avenue.

Detectives working a robbery detail pulled the teen over for a “traffic infraction,” Zabaleta said. The specifics of the infraction are still under investigation.

Police on Friday identified the teen as Brandon Madison.

When a detective walked up to the black Mercedes-Benz, something Madison prompted the investigator to ask him to exit the car, Zabaleta said. As Madison was getting out, he quickly got back in — slamming the car door on the officer’s hand.

He sped away south on Krome Avenue, hitting another car as he drove off, Zabaleta said. The woman driving that car was not injured.

Madison made it 10 blocks to Southwest 336th Street, where he lost control of the car, driving through a single-story apartment complex’s fence and into the building.

A handgun with a high-capacity magazine fell out of the car in the process, spilling multiple rounds onto the street, Zabaleta said, adding the gun did not fire.

Paramedics declared the boy dead at the scene of the crash, Zabaleta said.

No one in the apartment building was injured, according to police.

The gun was reported stolen from Northeast Miami-Dade, Zabaleta said.

And the car was a rental, meaning, because of his young age, the driver was not the customer.

Miami Herald staff writer Devoun Cetoute contributed to this report.