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Congratulations to Officer Bryan Maizo, recipient of the City of Coral Gables “Officer of the Month Award,” for the month of June, 2018.
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On June 9, 2018, Coral Gables Police responded to the Wishes Motel (4700 SW Eighth St) in reference to an Armed Robbery. The victim advised he was pistol whipped by a male offender, after inviting the male offender and two female companions to his hotel room (CGPD 18-004005). Units responded and during the course of the investigation, a juvenile female was located approximately 500’ from the Wishes Motel and was linked to a burglarized vehicle nearby at 813 Lorca St (CGPD Case 18-004007).
Ofc. Maizo remembered meeting a Miami Dade Police Officer at a Training who offered networking help to identify persons of interest in cases. Since the juvenile female was providing a false name, Ofc. Maizo made contact with the Miami Dade Police Officer and with his assistance was able to positively identify the juvenile female.
This is not the first time, Ofc. Maizo used his networking skills to help identify a person of interest in a Coral Gables case.
On June 7, 2018, Coral Gables Detectives arrested a 29 year old female who Ofc. Maizo assisted in providing her identification. On May 27, 2018, the victim stated he hired the services of a female masseuse and they responded to 7 Eleven (350 Bird Rd) in order to purchase some items. Unbeknownst to the victim, the female offender shoplifted from the 7 Eleven, and stole the book bag he left in her car (CGPD 18-003699).
Ofc. Maizo responded to this call and was able to obtain her Facebook pictures provided by the victim. The Facebook username seemed to be an alias, so Ofc. Maizo utilized his networking skills to positively identify the female offender. Ofc. Maizo received information that the female offender was recently arrested by the City of Miami Police, which he relayed to the primary officer who in turn relayed the information to the assigned Detective resulting in the arrest of the female offender.
I recently sat down with Ofc. Maizo as his newly assigned Supervisor to learn more about him, and this is when I became aware of his part in both these cases. Ofc. Maizo humbly explained these two incidents to me, not as a way to boast but to showcase the importance of relationships with other agencies and their Police Officers.
Ofc. Maizo was hired less than a year ago, and even though he has no prior Law Enforcement experience he is keenly aware that networking/disseminating information is an integral part of solving crime. These two cases are proof that he has a vested interest in the well-being of the citizens in Coral Gables by quickly attempting to identify offenders. As a Patrol Officer, there is a misconception that your “job” is completed once all paperwork relating to the call for service is complete. As proven by these two examples, Ofc. Maizo does not believe his job is finished with a response or report, he has proven that he will go beyond what is required of him to bring offenders to justice, and this is why I believe he is deserving of the Officer of the Month Award for June 2018.