Friends, family members and co-workers of Frank Ordonez - the UPS driver who was taken hostage and killed during last week's cross-county robbery - honored him at a vigil Sunday night.
Flowers, candles, and cards were placed on top of Ordonez's Acura outside the UPS facility in northwest Miami-Dade. The vehicle was left exactly where Ordonez parked it before heading to work Thursday.
The vigil was organized by the tight-knit UPS community.
“I haven't slept in 72 hours," Ordonez's stepfather, Joe Merino, said. "I mean, you fall asleep for 10-15 minutes and you wake up again because this feels like a bad dream that eventually you’re going to wake up from.”
Ordonez, a 27-year-old father of two, was covering for another driver who had called out on Thursday when his truck was hijacked by two men who held him hostage after they attempted to rob a jewelry store in Coral Gables.
The thieves led police on a cross-county chase that ended in a shootout in Miramar.
Local
Four people were killed, including the suspects, an innocent bystander, and Ordonez.
"There was a disregard for human life," Merino said. "There was a hostage situation. I understand I'm not a cop or attorney, but I understand that locals are supposed to secure the area and wait for SWAT."
It's unclear whose gunfire struck Ordonez. The incident remains under investigation.
Ordonez's family says his viewing will be open to the public on Monday at 5 p.m. at Vior Funeral Home.
