{"id":166449,"date":"2026-02-24T02:17:11","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T02:17:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/166449\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T02:17:11","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T02:17:11","slug":"gay-man-gunned-down-outside-popular-orlando-lgbtq-nightclub","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/166449\/","title":{"rendered":"Gay man gunned down outside popular Orlando LGBTQ+ nightclub"},"content":{"rendered":"

A 33-year-old gay Florida<\/a> man was shot and killed early Sunday outside the LGBTQ+<\/a> nightclub Savoy Orlando<\/a>, and a suspect has been charged, according to authorities.<\/p>\n

Keep up with the latest in LGBTQ<\/a>+ news and politics. Sign up for The Advocate’s email newsletter.<\/a><\/p>\n

Police said officers responded about 2:30 a.m. following reports of a shooting. Authorities found Julien Emmanuel Cruz suffering from a gunshot wound and transported him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. According to law enforcement officials, the fatal shooting followed a verbal and physical confrontation as crowds were leaving the nightclub.<\/p>\n

Related: Florida man charged with hate crime after killing a gay man in a dog park<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cDuring the dispute, the suspect retrieved a firearm from his vehicle and shot the victim,\u201d Orlando Police said.<\/p>\n

Police arrested Jean Gabriel Borja Gil De La Madr, 37, and charged him with second-degree murder with a firearm, according to an Orlando Police Department statement posted on social media. Cruz\u2019s family told<\/a> Orlando\u2019s NBC affiliate WESH that investigators are still working to determine who fired the fatal shot and described the killing as a senseless escalation of a brief encounter.<\/p>\n

Related: Pulse shooting remains a grim moment in LGBTQ+ history 8 years later<\/a><\/p>\n

“When they fought, my son saw [what was] happening, my son went to intervene, and when he intervened, another guy got out of the car, and he got shot,” Anthony Cruz, the victim\u2019s father, said.<\/p>\n

Cruz said his son and his son\u2019s partner had left the club after it closed when a car drove by, and the partner yelled at the occupants.<\/p>\n

Anthony Cruz told the station that one of the occupants began fighting with the man. “My son didn’t deserve what happened. All I have left is a shirt. A shirt with a bullet hole. And this is just not cool,” he said.<\/p>\n

A judge ordered Gabriel Borja held without bond during a Monday morning court appearance.<\/p>\n

Police said the killing was the city\u2019s third homicide of 2026.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Advocate: Gay man gunned down outside popular Orlando LGBTQ+ nightclub<\/a><\/p>\n

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