The twin brother of a Clevelander employee who was shot and killed in the lobby of the Miami Beach hotel last week is speaking out as a vigil is set to take place at the scene of the killing.
The vigil will take place Thursday night for 50-year-old Dion Moore, who was killed in the July 1 shooting.
Police said Moore was trying to remove a man from the popular South Beach hotel after the man was attempting to sneak into the nightclub.
The suspect, 29-year-old Brandon Kortez Burris, opened fire on Moore, killing him in the hotel lobby, police said.
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The victim’s twin brother, Derrick Moore, is remembering Dion as a hero. Derrick said he wished he could have been there that night to save his brother.
For Derrick, the loss of his twin only gets more difficult as the days go by and the reality that he’s gone sinks in. He also questions why the suspect had a gun at the hotel.
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"If you truly wanted to go have fun, why would you bring a gun into an establishment where people are dancing and having fun?" Derrick said Wednesday.
Derrick said he learned about he shooting minutes after the shots rang out, when he said he received a message on Facebook asking if he heard about what happened to Dion.
“I said 'what are you talking about?' 'Your brother was shot,'" recalled Derrick.
He said he ran as fast as he could to the Clevelander, saying he didn’t want to believe what he heard.
"Then I got in front of the Clevelander and I seen the yellow tape. I said 'What happened? Who was there? Where is he at? Is he still alive?'" he recalled.
At the hospital Derrick would learn that Dion died, just one month after their 50th birthday.
Officers arrested Burris a few blocks away from the scene. Miami Beach Police said Burris allegedly tried to sneak into the hotel nightclub several times, before Dion asked him to leave.
Burris eventually pulled out a gun and started shooting and at least six bullets hit Dion, according to police.
“I still haven’t seen his body to this day,” said Derrick.
Derrick has many questions about what happened that night, but one thing he knows for sure.
"My brother was a hero," he said.
Derrick believes that if the gunman was able to get into the club, the tragedy could have been worse.
He also said the tragedy has motivated him to get involved in gun reform
"I want him to be remembered as the guy who he did what he had to do to make other people’s lives better," he said.
A vigil is scheduled for Thursday at 7 p.m. on the rooftop of the Clevelander on Ocean Drive. A funeral will be held on July 23rd in Dunnellon where their mother is buried.
