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Family of UPS Driver Killed in Fla. Shootout Wants Answers

Frank Ordonez and an innocent bystander died, along with 2 robbery suspects
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 7, 2019 9:00 AM CST
Brother of Killed UPS Driver: He Was Covering for Another Driver
Law enforcement stand near a vehicle at a crime scene where four people were killed Thursday in Miramar, Fla.   (Charles Trainor Jr./Miami Herald via AP)

As the FBI and Florida Department of Law Enforcement continue to investigate the hijacking Thursday of a UPS truck in Florida that led to four deaths in a police shootout, the family of the deceased UPS driver is speaking out. Roy Ordonez tells CNN that his brother, 27-year-old Frank Ordonez, was killed in Miramar, Fla.—along with robbery suspects Lamar Alexander and Ronnie Jerome Hill, both 41, and innocent bystander Richard Cutshaw, 70—and that he wasn't even supposed to be working that route on Thursday: He was covering for another driver, "just going to work to provide for his two little girls." Roy Ordonez says his brother, whom he described as "outgoing and happy," had a 3-year-old and a 6-year-old he enjoyed spending his free time with, as well as fishing, playing video games, and shooting hoops.

In a statement, UPS noted that Ordonez had worked for the company since 2016 and offered its condolences to his family, which it says they're offering assistance to. "This senseless act of violence has impacted many on a personal level," the statement adds. 7News, meanwhile, notes the questions swirling around on how the police handled the chase and subsequent shootout, which reportedly involved cops using civilian cars on the street for cover. "Another innocent victim was killed. ... Where was the SWAT team that normally handles all the hostage situations?" says Joe Merino, Frank Ordonez's stepfather. "Where was the long sniper? Where was the hostage negotiator? [The police] came in full force." (More UPS stories.)

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