Investigators say dashcam video captured an argument, then shots from a black sedan.
MIAMI, Fla. — Two teenagers were charged after deputies said a drive-by shooting in southwest Miami-Dade left a 15-year-old boy shot multiple times Wednesday afternoon. The boy remained hospitalized Thursday, and investigators said video evidence helped identify a 16-year-old and a 17-year-old as suspects.
The shooting, reported about 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 18, 2026, shook a residential stretch of West Kendall and renewed concerns about gunfire near busy neighborhood streets where children walk to parks and bus stops. Authorities said the case is still under investigation, including whether the boys on foot were targeted. The victim, identified by officials as Eydam Ramos, was expected to survive, but deputies said the injuries were serious.
Deputies said Ramos and a 16-year-old friend were walking near Southwest 152nd Avenue when a car pulled up and an argument broke out with the people inside. According to arrest reports described by investigators, a dashboard camera recorded the confrontation and then captured the moment gunfire erupted. In the footage, deputies said, an arm from the front passenger seat extended out of a window holding a dark handgun. Several shots rang out, and the car sped away. Ramos was hit in the shoulder and ankle, deputies said, while his friend was not injured.
The friend helped Ramos move away from the danger and called 911 from a safer spot, authorities said. Rescue crews took Ramos to a hospital for treatment. By Thursday, deputies said he was still in critical condition but expected to survive. Investigators did not release details about surgeries or the number of bullets removed, and they did not say whether he would face long-term injuries. “This is a heinous crime against children,” Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office Detective Samantha Choon said in an interview about the case.
Authorities said the suspects were both minors, so deputies did not release their names. The 16-year-old was booked on multiple counts, including attempted second-degree murder, aggravated assault with a firearm, discharging a firearm from a vehicle, improper exhibition of a firearm and possession of a firearm by a minor, according to officials. The 17-year-old also faced attempted second-degree murder and aggravated assault with a firearm, deputies said. Investigators did not say whether either teen had an attorney or had entered a plea, and they did not release details about where the gun was found or whether it was recovered.
Neighbors in the West Kendall area described a sudden, unsettling scene in the minutes after the shots. Some residents said they heard a burst of rapid pops, then sirens. Ring-camera audio obtained by a local station captured what sounded like eight shots in quick succession near the time deputies said the shooting happened. A woman identified only as Teresa, who declined to provide her last name, said she was inside working when she heard the loud sequence. She said she looked outside and saw police activity and yellow tape close to her home. “It was really fast,” she said, describing the sound of the gunfire.
Investigators said they were still working to pin down a motive. Deputies have not said whether the shooting was linked to an earlier dispute, a social media argument, gang activity or a case of mistaken identity. They also have not said whether Ramos or his friend knew the people in the car. Officials said they were not ruling out that the boys were targeted, but they emphasized that key facts remain unclear. In the early hours of the investigation, authorities said they did not have enough information to release a detailed description of the vehicle or the people inside it.
By Thursday, however, deputies said they had made progress and took at least one person into custody in another part of the neighborhood. Residents reported seeing law enforcement activity near a townhome in the Kendall Square area, around Southwest 171st Avenue and Southwest 94th Way. One resident told a local TV crew that undercover officers approached him and said they were looking for a teen connected to the shooting. Deputies did not release additional details about what led them there, but officials said the arrests were connected to Wednesday’s gunfire.
The case now moves into the juvenile court system, where prosecutors and defense attorneys will argue over detention and the next steps. Authorities did not announce a court date in their public statements, and they did not say whether prosecutors plan to seek to try either teen as an adult. The charges, including attempted second-degree murder, suggest investigators believe the shooter acted with a depraved mind and disregard for human life, but officials have not publicly described the evidence supporting that legal theory beyond the video references. Deputies said they continue to review camera footage, interview witnesses and track down any additional occupants of the vehicle involved.
As the investigation continued, families in the area described the fear that follows a shooting near homes and sidewalks. One resident, Arturo Narciandi, said he was about to take his young child to a nearby park when he noticed flashing lights and crime scene tape. He said he did not hear the gunfire himself but learned that neighbors had. He said the incident changed how he thinks about simple routines. “I am very scared even to go to the park now,” Narciandi said, describing worries about being outside near the street at the wrong moment.
Deputies urged anyone who saw the shooting, heard the argument beforehand, or has video from nearby cameras to contact investigators. Authorities said tips can also be sent to Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers. As of Friday, Feb. 20, deputies had not released an arrest affidavit to the public with a full timeline of the suspects’ movements, and they had not said whether more arrests were expected.
Author note: Last updated February 20, 2026.