(CNN) Two robbery suspects and 21 law enforcement officers exchanged nearly 200 bullets in this month's deadly shootout at a busy Florida intersection, an official with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement said.

Those are preliminary figures from the early stages of the investigation into the December 5 shootout that left four people dead, FDLE Special Agent Troy Walker said Wednesday. His comments came during a roundtable discussion with the Miami-Dade County Community Relations Board's Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Committee.

The investigation, Walker said, will not be over any time soon.

"We are not going to cut any corners whatsoever," he told community members. "So whatever time it takes for us to do that, that's what we're going to do, because we owe it to you all."

The incident began when two suspects robbed a jewelry store in Coral Gables and hijacked a UPS truck, taking the driver hostage, according to officials. They led police on a lengthy chase that ended in the shooting at a busy intersection in Miramar, where bystanders' cars became shields for police as they exchanged gunfire with the suspects.

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