The brother of a UPS driver who was taken hostage by jewelry thieves and slain in a police shootout has blamed law enforcement for his brother’s death.
Killed was Frank Ordonez, a 27-year-old father of two young girls, who died on Thursday outside of Miami along with a male bystander in a nearby car and the two armed robbers who hijacked his UPS truck and took him hostage following a botched jewelry store heist.
When the armed criminals became stuck in traffic in Broward County, 19 officers from multiple agencies descended and fired some 200 shots at the stolen truck, in an exchange of gunfire that killed both criminals, Ordonez, and the bystander.
It was not immediately clear who fired the fatal bullets that killed Ordonez or the bystander, but Ordonez’s brother places the blame for his death on overzealous law enforcement.
‘I won’t stop until there is justice for your life, the police killed my brother and they must be held accountable,’ brother Roy Ordonez wrote in a Facebook post shared by WFOR-TV reporter Amber Diaz.
Frank Ordonez was on his first day of work as a UPS driver when the fatal carnage unfolded.
The Coral Gables Police department, which initiated the car pursuit after the heist in their jurisdiction, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from DailyMail.com.
‘This is what dangerous people do to get away,’ Coral Gables Police Chief Ed Hudak said during a news conference on Thursday, blaming the deaths on the criminals who refused to surrender. ‘And this is what people will do to avoid capture.’
Frank Ordonez (left), a 27-year-old father of two young girls, was killed Thursday when diamond thieves took him hostage and engaged in a shootout with police. His brother Ray Ordonez (right) blames law enforcement for his death
Jewelry store thieves in a hijacked UPS truck are pictured in a shootout with police after a high-speed chase from Coral Gables, Florida, ended when the vehicle got stuck in traffic on a highway near Miramar
In a statement (left) UPS said their employee was ‘a victim of a senseless act of violence.’ Driver Frank Ordonez’s brother expressed his own anguish on Facebook (right) saying police were to blame for his death
The violence started after two thieves entered Regent Jeweler’s store in Coral Gables (1) before they abducted Frank Ordonez’s UPS truck a mile away (2). They then led a police chase for 23 miles which ended with a shootout on Flamingo Road (3) which resulted in four people being killed
The mayhem began when two armed robbers hit the Regent Jewelers in Coral Gables at around 4.15pm on Thursday, and ended a little over an hour later and 25 miles away in a hail of bullets.
Police say the pair of robbers were after diamonds at the Regent Jeweler’s store on the Miracle Mile.
After entering the store, employees set off a silent alarm which alerted police, who were on the scene within a minute and a half.
But by that time, the store owner had pulled his own gun and fired upon the surprised robbers, who returned shots, striking a female employee in the head. She is in stable condition.
The jewel thieves then fled in their U-Haul van but ditched it a mile away, where they hijacked the UPS truck and abducted Ordonez, who leaves behind a one-year-old daughter.
The robbers led police on a wild chase for 23 miles before the truck became stuck in traffic and a shootout erupted.
As many as 19 officers descended on the truck, spraying the vehicle with more than 200 rounds, a source told WFOR.
It was Ordonez’s (above) first day as a driver after having completed his training, and he had been excited about going to work
Video shows sheriff’s deputies rushing to surround the truck after it became stopped in traffic on a busy street in Miramar
Police reportedly fired some 200 bullets at the hijacked truck (above) in an exchange of gunfire with the criminals
A male bystander in this dark sedan was also fatally struck in the hail of bullets as the crooks shot it out with police
Thursday had been Ordonez’s first day as a driver after having completed his training, and that he had been excited about going to work, according to a co-worker.
A GoFundMe page went up late Thursday to raise funds for Ordonez. It was set up by Local 804, a union that represents UPS workers in New York, to help Ordonez’s family with funeral costs.
UPS did not mention him by name, but released a statement saying the package delivery company was ‘deeply saddened’ he had been a ‘victim of this senseless violence’.
One bullet was even found to have struck the Coral Gables City Hall during the exchange at the jewelry store.
City Clerk Billy Urquia told the Miami Herald he was in his office when he heard a gun shot.
He then heard a second gun shot and then the sound of a bullet piercing his window.
‘The bullet ricocheted off the wall and landed on the floor,’ Urquia said Thursday night. ‘The last one I heard was the one that came in.’
The suspects then made their escape in the hijacked UPS truck, taking its driver hostage and leading authorities on a high-speed pursuit. The chase was captured by news outlets and broadcast live as the drama unfolded.
Bullet holes are seen around the UPS logo of the truck after the shootout between police and the armed jewelry store robbery suspects who authorities say hijacked the vehicle. As many as 19 officers descended on the truck once it was finally stopped, spraying the vehicle with more than 200 rounds
The police chase was broadcast on live TV and showed the UPS truck travelling down Flamingo Road before it became stuck in traffic at the Miramar Parkway intersection
A coworker said that Thursday had been Ordonez’s first day as a driver after having completed his training, and that he had been excited about going to work
Bullet holes are seen around the UPS logo of the hijacked truck at the scene of the shooting in Miramar, Florida
Debris is seen on the ground near where authorities are investigating the scene of the shootout following a 23-mile chase
Rush-hour had started when the truck made its getaway and as many as 40 emergency vehicles pursued.
The UPS truck made its way up the Florida Turnpike, then on to Okeechobee Road and finally Interstate 75 into Broward County.
The suspects fired upon cops during the pursuit, the Miami Herald reports.
After running several red lights and making harrowing maneuvers in an attempt to escape, the truck became stuck in traffic on Miramar Parkway near Flamingo Road around 5.30pm.
Motorists and bystanders watched as police officers frantically scrambled to stop the suspects.
Police were then seen approaching the truck and opening fire into the vehicle, reports WPLG.
Footage from the scene show shots being fired, and a man’s leg becomes visible in the truck’s passenger side door, followed by another man climbing over him who covers his head for protection from the spray of bullets.
The armed robbers had first targeted Regent Jewelers where they were after diamonds before they became engaged in a shootout with the owner
Coral Gables police officers guard a crime scene perimeter at an alley way south of Coral Way after a robbery at Regent Jewelers
Dozens of cops arrived as blood could be seen covering the roadway and at least one person was airlifted to an area hospital after the violence ended.
The follow-up investigation includes support from the FBI.
Hours after the chase ended, medical gauze, wrappers and other debris remained strewn across the Miramar roadway’s middle lane, next to the truck which still had its right rear door open.
Traffic remained snarled, and it was not clear how long it would take investigators to clear the scene.
UPS spokesman David Graves said they are staying in touch with authorities. He didn’t share any information about the driver, Ordonez.