Scott Richard Rakow was a 29-year-old Miami Beach police officer who was killed on June 30, 1988, during an undercover narcotics operation. The sting involved an undercover detective attempting to sell $100,000 worth of cocaine. Spotters in nearby high-rise buildings observed the operation and alerted the suspects, who tried to rob the undercover detective and fled when the situation turned chaotic.

One suspect stole the undercover vehicle while another escaped in the car they had arrived in. Officer Rakow pursued the latter vehicle until it crashed at NE 83rd Street and Bayshore Drive. As the suspect ran from the wreck, he opened fire and struck Officer Rakow in the head; Rakow later died without regaining consciousness. The shooter was captured after jumping into a canal; both he and an accomplice were convicted of first-degree murder, armed robbery, weapons violations, and drug trafficking and received life sentences.

Rakow had served four years with the Miami Beach Police Department and was survived by his wife, daughter, parents, siblings, and colleagues. Did anyone in the Miami Beach area at that time witness the chase or have information about the spotters in the high-rise buildings?