An 18-year-old man arrested in the kidnapping and rape of a teen in Miami-Dade, Florida, was cleared of all charges Wednesday after DNA evidence exonerated him of the crime, while a second man has been arrested in the alleged incident.
Miguel Macias had been arrested on March 13 in the December 2014 incident, in which the 18-year-old was driven to a remote location and raped.
At a court hearing Wednesday, Judge Jason Bloch apologized to Macias and said he will seal his arrest record.
"Mr. Macias, I apologize for what happened to you sir," Judge Bloch said.
Macias said being away from his family hurt him the most while in jail.
"When you gotta talk to them through a phone and through the glass, that's what gets to you the most," he said. "I knew from the very beginning that I was innocent, I just knew it was a matter of time."
According to Macias' attorney, Mark Eiglarsh, Macias was arrested after the victim found him on Facebook and identified him as the man who raped her. Macias professed his innocence and volunteered a DNA sample after his arrest, Eiglarsh said.
But when the DNA results from the crime were released, they pointed police to 27-year-old Miguel Angel Bustos, who denied the rape allegations and said the sex was consensual, according to a Miami-Dade Police arrest report.
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Bustos was arrested Tuesday on sexual battery and kidnapping charges. He was being held without bond Wednesday and it was unknown if he has an attorney.
Many would agree the two men look alike, but Eiglarsh insisted the Facebook identification was insufficient. Macias had text messages proving his alibi, and his tattooed arms and hands should have been an easy way for the victim to identify her attacker, Eiglarsh said.
Chief assistant state attorney Kathleen Hoague said Macias was arrested based on the testimony of a witness and corroborating evidence.
"Once we found out there was other evidence that indicated otherwise, especially DNA, as well as alibi witnesses, we moved as expeditiously as possible and the right result happened," Hoague said. "We are very sorry that the man was in custody for the period of time that he was, but as soon as we found out, we did what we had to do and we released him, this happens all the time, okay, this is not the first time this has happened and it won't be the last."
Eiglarsh said Macias spent 42 days in jail for a crime he didn't commit and he wants to make sure it doesn't happen again.
"If this happens frequently then something needs to be done. I understand that mistakes occur, but they could do things differently," Eiglarsh said. "Don't file the charges when the evidence is so weak before confirming with the lab whether the DNA proves that my client did it or didn't do it."
