Rio Grande Valley native Frank Hernandez was killed in the shooting early Sunday morning at the Orlando, Florida, gay nightclub, family and friends confirmed yesterday.
Aqui Estamos RGV, an LGBTQ and justice advocacy group, posted the news of Hernandez’s death on its Facebook page.
Hernandez also went by the name Frank Escalante, family members said.
“It breaks our hearts to announce that we have received confirmation that Frank Escalante, a member of our LGBTQ Rio Grande Valley family, lost his life at the #OrlandoShooting yesterday,” the post read in part.
The 27-year-old former Weslaco resident’s death was also confirmed by his aunt, Aurora Rodriguez. She was not able to provide any other details as of press time, but said that Hernandez’s immediate family now lives in Louisiana.
Hernandez’s sister, Julissa Leal, of Lafayette, Louisiana, posted a statement about her brother’s death on Facebook.
“I honestly don’t know how to say it, I don’t want to say it, I don’t even want to believe it. I don’t understand why he had to be one of the many victims who didn’t make it. Why did it have to be him of all people,” she wrote.
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