‘I know nothing’: Mother of slain UPS driver asks law enforcement for transparency

Bianca Padró Ocasio

The mother of the UPS driver who was held hostage and killed last week said she was being kept in the dark by authorities about the details surrounding her son’s death.

“Today is the fifth day and I know nothing.,” said Luz Apolinario as she left the funeral for her son, 27-year-old Frank Ordonez.

“The only thing I know is that I have left my son here and that my son will not come back and I have to live on my own. That’s all I know, and that it was not time to leave him here,” said Apolinario, who spoke after burying her son Tuesday at Vista Memorial Gardens in Miami Lakes. “I feel I am dead inside.”

Family and friends gather at the Vista Memorial Gardens cemetery in Miami Lakes on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2019, for the burial service of Frank Ordonez, the UPS driver who was taken hostage by armed robbers and killed during a shootout with police on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019.
Family and friends gather at the Vista Memorial Gardens cemetery in Miami Lakes on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2019, for the burial service of Frank Ordonez, the UPS driver who was taken hostage by armed robbers and killed during a shootout with police on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019.

Ordonez, a 70-year-old man and the two robbers were killed Thursday evening in what began as a theft at Regent Jewelers in Coral Gables. From there, the robbers hijacked a UPS truck that Ordonez was driving, and held him hostage as they sped from police in a high-speed Miami-Dade and Broward chase, terrorizing rush-hour commuters in the two counties.

The chase ended in a violent finale on Miramar Parkway, as police and the robbers opened fire on the traffic-clogged roadway, leading to the death of Ordonez and Richard Cutshaw, a 70-year-old Pembroke Pines resident and union representative who was driving a nearby car.

The two robbers — Lamar Alexander and Ronnie Hill, both of Miami-Dade County — were also killed in the shootout.

Family and friends gather at the Vista Memorial Gardens cemetery in Miami Lakes on Tuesday for the burial service of Frank Ordonez, the UPS driver who was taken hostage by armed robbers and killed during a shootout with police last Thursday.
Family and friends gather at the Vista Memorial Gardens cemetery in Miami Lakes on Tuesday for the burial service of Frank Ordonez, the UPS driver who was taken hostage by armed robbers and killed during a shootout with police last Thursday.

The FBI, which is in charge of the investigation, has shed little light on Ordonez’s death and whether he was killed by police fire.

The family of Ordonez has been demanding transparency from law enforcement, as videos have surfaced that call into question police response. More than 100 rounds of ammunition were fired during the incident.

Apolinario told reporters Tuesday that Ordonez’s daughters, ages 5 and 3, still don’t know or understand the details of what happened to their dad.

Ordonez “was the best young man, honest, friendly. He spread love,” Apolinario said.

Bianca Padró Ocasio: 305-376-2649, @BiancaJoanie