UPS Driver Dies In Pursuit In Miami

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

Frank Ordonez, a 27-year-old Ecuadorian father, tragically lost his life after being kidnapped in Miami on Thursday. Armed robbers who robbed a jewelry store in Coral Gables took the driver, who had gone out on his daily route, hostage and used him as a shield when confronted by police in a fatal pursuit in Miramar. Police fired on the truck, killing the assailants and also Ordonez and another person who was in his car on the same I-75 freeway. The incident caused four deaths and has caused a stir in the community.

Frank was the father of two girls, ages 5 and 3, reported El Nuevo Herald. Ordóñez's stepfather, Joe Merino, blamed the police for doing nothing to save Frank's life during the shooting. Merino asked why a SWAT team was not used and the situation was better controlled to avoid the death of innocents.

"In January, I was going to have a fixed route," said Merino of his stepson, who had just started driving after working for years loading UPS trucks. "It was all for his daughters," he added of the young worker. "How do I tell two girls, ages three and five, that their dad is not coming home?" Merino asked tearfully.

“We are deeply saddened to learn that a UPS driver was the victim of this absurd act of violence. We express our condolences to the family and friends of our employee and to the other innocent victims involved in the incident,”UPS said in a statement. "Frank joined UPS in July 2016, working first as a package manager and then as a driver."

The FBI confirmed that the two thieves - identified as Lamar Alexander and Ronnie Jerome Hill - and another person who was inside a car on the same highway were also killed in the shooting. Frank's brother Roy Ordonez created a GoFundMe page to raise funds for the funeral expenses and for the daughters of the late UPS driver. "He did not deserve to die as he died, he only went to work to support his two daughters, who he loved so much, and who are now left without a father," says his moving message.