FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Jason Banegas, who was accused of fatally shooting Hollywood Officer Yandy Chirino in 2021, changed his plea to guilty, prosecutors said on Monday.
A Broward County grand jury issued an indictment on Nov. 4, 2021, charging Banegas, then 18 years old, with first-degree murder with a firearm, armed burglary of a dwelling, two counts of attempted burglary of a conveyance, possession of a firearm, resisting an officer with violence, and battery on a law enforcement officer, records show.
Jury selection will go forward as planned for the death penalty phase, according to the Broward County State Attorney’s Office. Banegas is set to mark his 23rd birthday on Nov. 9.
Chirino, who was born in Havana, Cuba, and grew up in Miami, graduated from Coral Park High School in 2011 and from Florida International University in 2015. He joined the Hollywood Police Department in 2017.
Chirino responded to a call of “a suspicious person checking for unlocked cars” at about 10:30 p.m., on Oct. 17, 2021, on the 4000 block of North Hills Drive, and Banegas shot him while resisting arrest, according to police.
Chirino’s squad mates rushed him to Memorial Regional Hospital, where he died on Oct. 18, 2021. He was 28.
On Monday, Hollywood Police Department Chief Jeffrey Devlin said anyone who hurts or kills a police officer will have the entire weight of the justice system falling on them.
“Today, we saw the first steps of accountability,” Devlin said. “This is not the end of the road by any means.”
Local 10 News Senior Assignment Editor Frine Gomez contributed to this report.
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