Man in Handcuffs Drowns After Fleeing From Police

Police are still trying to piece together what led to 20-year-old Alex Nicolas' death yesterday. The man was stopped by officers at 163rd Street and Biscayne Boulevard in North Miami Beach around 5 p.m. Police handcuffed Nicolas, but he ran off and ended up jumping into a canal, where he...

By Kyle Munzenrieder

January 27, 2014

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Police are still trying to piece together what led to 20-year-old Alex Nicolas' death yesterday. The man was stopped by officers at 163rd Street and Biscayne Boulevard in North Miami Beach around 5 p.m. Police handcuffed Nicolas, but he ran off and ended up jumping into a canal, where he drowned.

Police have not yet released much information about the incident, but WSVN has identified the man as Nicolas, a graduate of Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Senior High.

"The subject was taken out from the driver's side of the vehicle; he was placed in handcuffs," Miami-Dade Police Det. Elena Hernandez told the station. "The subject then fled on foot from the officers, crossing Biscayne Boulevard and jumping into a nearby canal."

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue jumped in to retrieve Nicolas. He was taken to Aventura Hosptial, where he was pronounced dead.

No details about why he had been detained have been released. Nicolas appears to have a clean criminal record in Miami-Dade County.

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