Miami Beach Commissioner says Fugitive Gunman Arrested

The manhunt is over for the man accused of pointing a gun at a Miami Beach City Commissioner.

Commissioner Joseph Magazine says suspect Christopher Pitre was arrested Aug. 17 while committing another crime.

"He was actually arrested shoplifting from Walgreen's," Magazine said. "A very alert employee alerted the police and then he fled from the police."

Pitre, 35, was arrested at a gas station not far from the Walgreen's.

Court records show a history of arrest, but it was an incident on April 11 that grabbed headlines.

Pitre was found sleeping in the Commissioner's car and when Magazine woke him up, he says Pitre pointed a gun at him.

"Opened the car door and somebody falls right out," he said. "I'm saying, 'get back here,' calling 911 as well."

The encounter in the parking garage of Magazine's condominium is recorded on video by security cameras.

"[Pitre] turns around, he's about five feet in front of me, and he has a gun, and points it at my chest," Magazine said. "There's a red laser beam that's on my chest and I put up my hands."

Pitre was arrested a short time later and eventually ended up wearing an ankle monitor assigned to a substance abused treatment center.

Magazine said Pitre should have been kept in jail to await trial instead of disabling his ankle monitor and escaping.

"A lot of people [were] on edge," he said. "Especially with school just starting [and] people coming back into the neighborhood and not knowing this person's whereabouts."

Pitre is back behind bars facing 25 charges.