MIAMI, Fla. – More than a week after an Uber driver was arrested on an open warrant he adamantly insisted was for someone else, News 6 went to Miami-Dade County to ask the state attorney what may have gone wrong. “We have just as important responsibility to protect the innocent as we do to convict the guilty,” Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez said. Jose Batista was arrested in a case of possible mistaken identity, prosecutors said. Batista is back on his feet now, after losing his job and his car during his arrest and time away from his family. He’s back home with his wife who stood by his side and fought for his release and their 1-year-old son. Batista was arrested May 18 at International Drive and Austrian Court after deputies from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office pulled him over for a faulty headlight as Batista was driving for Uber, according to an incident report. During the traffic stop, deputies said Batista had an open Miami-Dade County warrant on an aggravated battery. “There’s no question, make no mistake the system failed Jose Batista,” Batista’s lawyer, Michael Glasser, said. Glasser said he’s upset his client spent seven days behind bars for a no-show warrant following an aggravated battery arrest in Miami Beach more than 20 years ago. “People cannot sit in custody for situations they’re not involved in,” Glasser said. Glasser is taking every step to find out who messed up.
“How far do they have to go to confirm what someone else should have properly?” Glasser said. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said the wrong FBI number was put on the arrest warrant entered by a local agency in Miami for Marco Jose Batista, which led to the arrest of Jose Batista in Orange County. The Miami-Dade state attorney said her office is working double-time to try to and resolve what happened. “Trying to figure out were fingerprints taken, if so where are they, and if we can find this victim,” said Fernandez. “To Jose I’d say, just a little patience, if you’ve been wronged by the system then I’ll apologize in advance.” News 6 is going to keep pressing for results on this story. We’re asking prosecutors, FDLE, and deputies here in Orange County and Miami-Dade County what happened.