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A 33-year-old gay Florida man was shot and killed early Sunday outside the LGBTQ+ nightclub Savoy Orlando, and a suspect has been charged, according to authorities.
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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.
Related: Florida man charged with hate crime after killing a gay man in a dog park
“During the dispute, the suspect retrieved a firearm from his vehicle and shot the victim,” Orlando Police said.
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’s family told Orlando’s 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.
Related: Pulse shooting remains a grim moment in LGBTQ+ history 8 years later
"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’s father, said.
Cruz said his son and his son’s partner had left the club after it closed when a car drove by, and the partner yelled at the occupants.
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.
A judge ordered Gabriel Borja held without bond during a Monday morning court appearance.
Police said the killing was the city’s third homicide of 2026.
